Chairman’s Letter : September 2010
Dear Member(s)
The months from January to June were the busiest that I can remember since joining the committee. A number of factors combined to bring about this situation.
Big changes at Campus West presented us with a number of decisions to be made. A big rise in the cost of hiring the theatre for a morning caused us to momentarily consider another venue. However, we soon realised that we would find it almost impossible to find somewhere so central offering such good facilities. It is worth mentioning at this point that time and again lecturers comment on what a splendid venue we have!
Campus also announced in April that they were abandoning slide projectors in favour of digital presentation. In reality this meant that they were getting rid of their slide projectors and they also informed us that they would no longer be prepared to store the Society projector. This presented a problem for us in that, although most lecturers are now using digital presentations, there are still a few who require a slide projector. As our own projector lacks power a decision was made to purchase another one for the few occasions that we may still require one. We contacted a media specialist and were fortunate to buy from them a slide projector at reasonable cost.
April was also the month that volcanic ash was responsible for our speaker, Oliver Everett, being stranded in Washington. A replacement speaker was quickly found in the guise of Eric Shanes who spoke on The Royal Academy of Arts. For those of you who were disappointed not to hear Oliver Everett we have re- booked him to speak during the 2011 -2012 programme.Committee News
Graham Spring will be standing down as treasurer at the AGM in November after serving on the committee for six years. David Tabraham-Palmer will be relinquishing his post as Programme Secretary and moving to Treasurer. Mrs Linda Read has agreed to take on the role of Programme Secretary. We need to recruit one or two people to work with Outings and Study Days with a view to taking over in a year’s time.
Jean Hockings continues to up-date the web-site and Chris Lund alerts members to Society news and activities through the monthly digital notices. Both the web-site and the digital notices were entered for a NADFAS Media award and although these were unsuccessful we did have success in having an article on our Young Arts Day at Monks Walk School accepted for the Summer Review.2010 programme
Many members have commented on the high standard of lectures this year. Picasso’s “Guernica” gave some of us a whole new understanding of Modern Art. Eric Shanes’ memorable lecture on Gustav Mahler kept many members literally glued to their seats, unable to move. Who can forget the intimate story of Lee Miller and Roland Penrose as told by Antony Penrose? Most recently Dr Paul Roberts gave an excellent account of the numerous cultures that have left their mark on the island of Sicily.
Our first locally based Study Day on “Gems From Life” was a resounding success and the trip to Cookham and Eton was enjoyed in glorious April sunshine. In June the outing to Oxford provided an opportunity to explore the newly refurbished Ashmolean.2011 programme
The nine lectures are booked and include subjects such as Heraldry, The Punch and Judy Show, Trompe l’Oeil and The Three kings through the centuries. We will hear about Britain with Betjeman, L S Lowry, Ninette to Nureyev, David Hockney, and we will find out how Travel broadens the mind.
Norah Irvin has contacted Onslow St Audrey’s School in Hatfield with a plan to take Art Students on visits to art galleries.
We are hoping to arrange an outing to Highgrove and planned Study Days are to Cambridge and a tour of the Royal Opera House.Church Recorders
The record for St Andrew and St Mary at Watton-at-Stone is almost complete. The photographer has had a problem with his computer which has resulted in a delay with the photographs but it is hoped that the record will be ready for presentation by the end of the summer.
A long standing member of Church Recorders, Jim Holder-Vale is retiring after a number of years service. Joyce Wallis would be delighted to hear from anyone interested in church recording.Annual Fees
After four years with the subscription at £31 and then only a small increase to £32 for this year we are now having to raise it to £35 for 2011-12. Hire costs at Campus West rose very modestly until 2009 but the imposition of VAT and other factors have caused them to increase substantially since then; unfortunately these extra costs must now be reflected in higher subscription levels.
As about £11 out of the £35 goes to NADFAS as your affiliation fee we believe the remaining £24 still represents excellent value for a year’s lectures and the other benefits you enjoy from membership of our local society. Our charges will still compare favourably with those of other NADFAS societies in the area.
The visitor’s fee for 2011 will be £6 per lecture. If plans to increase the seating capacity of Campus West are achieved we will consider lifting our total membership from the current 350. That would enable us to spread any future increase in costs more widely and limit their impact on subscription levels. I will give you an up-date on this in my January letter.
The 30th Anniversary Lunch was a great way to end the first session of our 2010-2011 programme. Welwyn Garden City Golf Club provided a lovely setting for such an occasion and everybody enjoyed a relaxed and enjoyable meal.
And finally --------
Can I remind you that we meet on 13th October –the second Wednesday!
Best wishes,
Dianne Howes
Chairman's Letter September 2009 Chairman's Letter January 2009