Well, it has been a while since my last communication!
I have been extremely busy preparing for the Academy opening next month (I hope to post illustrations regarding this event soon). Although preparations
continue a pace, I feel a great need for a brief respite from my labours, to
revive my body and gather my thoughts – and I might as well chat as sit in
silence!
I shall put an advertisement in
the local press (which, in my time, is the Derby
Mercury), alerting prospective patrons to the commencement of Academy
services. What do you think – shall this suffice?
The Academy will open with a
small public exhibition, held between the hours of two and four o’clock, in the
afternoon of Saturday 15 July (I shall elucidate a little further below; in the
meantime, here is a copy of the handbill that publicises the event, for your
appraisal).
Unfortunately, I shall have to
request that patrons leave their carriages a short walk’s distance from the Academy,
as resident’s vehicles congest the narrow roads. Restrictions are already in
place (due to the propensity of students at a nearby higher educational
establishment to avoid paying the parking fee imposed by their institution), and
carriages not displaying permits might feel the force of the local constable. I shall provide a plan of the location of nearby road-side standing for vehicles (no charge at the weekends) anon.
I must also note that there are no
public sanitary facilities; and that hand-vehicles, such as perambulator, may
find it difficult to circumnavigate the confined rooms of my abode, or be daunted by the
shallow step into the property. But I shall endeavour to aid those with
mobility difficulties, for whom (by prior arrangement) I may be able to locate
standing for one small carriage closer to my establishment.
The exhibition not only launches
the Academy, but takes place as part of the annual Council for British
Archaeology Festival of Archaeology (as
described in the pages of their virtual book – known as a ‘website’, I believe;
I can only imagine that some kind of alchemy – or witchcraft – has brought about
this baffling medium).
I shall now say a little more on
the exhibition. This July we mark a notable anniversary of the passing of that
talented authoress, Jane Austen, and over the following year, I shall commemorate
her life with talks, walks, and workshops that explore the material culture and
other attributes of her time. The exhibition introduces some of the material I
will discuss during these events, using extracts from her novels and letters,
and from early biographies, to consider a number of topics to illuminate everyday
experiences in the late 1700s and early 1800s, from a Derbyshire perspective. For
your perusal, I have prepared manuscripts containing further information:
But I must now return to my labours, and ask that you might call another time to see how the Academy
progresses.
Yours, &c., &c., Mrs. Leach
