Wordsworth Trust
Encyclopedia
The Wordsworth Trust is a living memorial set up to celebrate the works of the poet William Wordsworth
and his contemporaries. Wordsworth, conscious of the need for poetry to renew itself within a tradition speaks of writing for 'youthful poets' who 'will be my second self when I am gone.'
An organisation set up to celebrate the contemporary as much as remember the past, it offers much in the way of contemporary visual art and poetry readings, alongside the historical home of Wordsworth, Dove Cottage
(1799–1808) and a museum featuring relevant portraits and manuscripts.
Since 2000 the Wordsworth Trust has collaborated with Grizedale Arts
on artistic projects such as the "We Are Seven Commune Project", which was a month-long residency for seven artists from New York
.http://theconiston.typepad.com/theconiston/2005/09/we_are_seven_co.html
Explaining the aims and ideals of the first board of trustees, responsible for opening Dove Cottage to the public, Stopford Brooke wrote, in 1890:
There is no place, ... which has so many thoughts and memories as this belonging to our poetry; none at least in which they are so closely bound up with the poet and the poems ... In every part of this little place [Wordsworth] has walked with his sister and wife or talked with Coleridge. And it is almost untouched. Why should we not try and secure it, ... for the eternal possession of those who love English poetry all over the world.
Today, around 70,000 people visit Dove Cottage
, The Wordworth Museum and Art Gallery in Grasmere
, Lake District
, Cumbria
each year. They can see how the great poet and his family and friends lived during his most productive and brilliant period. Guided tours of the cottage include a commentary on Wordsworth's life, and visitors are told a selection of anecdotes which bring the experience to life. They can enjoy an exhibition about his life in the Museum and view special exhibitions about related subjects in the Art Gallery.
The Wordsworth Trust continues to foster new art and has both a Poet-in-Residence (Owen Sheers
is amongst former holders of the post) and an Artist-in-Residence. There are readings of contemporary poetry from the Poet-in-Residence and visiting poets throughout the summer months, along with regular exhibitions of art ranging from Turner and Constable to new, modern artists and photographers throughout the year.
Visiting schools are provided with educational materials and for scholars, it is possible to arrange a visit to the Jerwood Centre which is a centre for research and academic study. Over 80% of all original Wordsworth manuscripts are held here, together with around 60,000 other documents, manuscripts and items of artwork.
The Trust also runs a volunteer programme for post-graduates which allows them to experience working in a museum / heritage environment, and so gain some of the skills needed for a career in that field.
The Trust's first Director, up until his death in 2005, was Dr Robert Woof
.
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads....
and his contemporaries. Wordsworth, conscious of the need for poetry to renew itself within a tradition speaks of writing for 'youthful poets' who 'will be my second self when I am gone.'
An organisation set up to celebrate the contemporary as much as remember the past, it offers much in the way of contemporary visual art and poetry readings, alongside the historical home of Wordsworth, Dove Cottage
Dove Cottage
Dove Cottage is a house on the edge of Grasmere in the Lake District. It is best known as the home of the poet William Wordsworth and his sister Dorothy Wordsworth from December 1799 to May 1808, where they spent over eight years of "plain living, but high thinking"...
(1799–1808) and a museum featuring relevant portraits and manuscripts.
Since 2000 the Wordsworth Trust has collaborated with Grizedale Arts
Grizedale Arts
Grizedale Arts is a contemporary arts residency and commissioning agency in the central Lake District in rural Northern England. It conducts cultural projects locally, nationally and internationally...
on artistic projects such as the "We Are Seven Commune Project", which was a month-long residency for seven artists from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.http://theconiston.typepad.com/theconiston/2005/09/we_are_seven_co.html
Explaining the aims and ideals of the first board of trustees, responsible for opening Dove Cottage to the public, Stopford Brooke wrote, in 1890:
There is no place, ... which has so many thoughts and memories as this belonging to our poetry; none at least in which they are so closely bound up with the poet and the poems ... In every part of this little place [Wordsworth] has walked with his sister and wife or talked with Coleridge. And it is almost untouched. Why should we not try and secure it, ... for the eternal possession of those who love English poetry all over the world.
Today, around 70,000 people visit Dove Cottage
Dove Cottage
Dove Cottage is a house on the edge of Grasmere in the Lake District. It is best known as the home of the poet William Wordsworth and his sister Dorothy Wordsworth from December 1799 to May 1808, where they spent over eight years of "plain living, but high thinking"...
, The Wordworth Museum and Art Gallery in Grasmere
Grasmere
Grasmere is a village, and popular tourist destination, in the centre of the English Lake District. It takes its name from the adjacent lake, and is associated with the Lake Poets...
, Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
, Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
each year. They can see how the great poet and his family and friends lived during his most productive and brilliant period. Guided tours of the cottage include a commentary on Wordsworth's life, and visitors are told a selection of anecdotes which bring the experience to life. They can enjoy an exhibition about his life in the Museum and view special exhibitions about related subjects in the Art Gallery.
The Wordsworth Trust continues to foster new art and has both a Poet-in-Residence (Owen Sheers
Owen Sheers
Owen Sheers is a Welsh poet, author, playwright, actor and TV presenter.-Biography:Owen Sheers was born in Suva, Fiji in 1974 and brought up in Abergavenny, South Wales...
is amongst former holders of the post) and an Artist-in-Residence. There are readings of contemporary poetry from the Poet-in-Residence and visiting poets throughout the summer months, along with regular exhibitions of art ranging from Turner and Constable to new, modern artists and photographers throughout the year.
Visiting schools are provided with educational materials and for scholars, it is possible to arrange a visit to the Jerwood Centre which is a centre for research and academic study. Over 80% of all original Wordsworth manuscripts are held here, together with around 60,000 other documents, manuscripts and items of artwork.
The Trust also runs a volunteer programme for post-graduates which allows them to experience working in a museum / heritage environment, and so gain some of the skills needed for a career in that field.
The Trust's first Director, up until his death in 2005, was Dr Robert Woof
Robert Woof (scholar)
Dr. Robert Samuel Woof was an English scholar, most famous for having been the first Director of the Wordsworth Trust and Museums Director of the Wordsworth Museum at Dove Cottage in Grasmere, Lake District, Cumbria...
.