Frogmore Paper Mill Art Auction Fundraiser – Two Sides

To all of the friends and supporters of the Apsley Paper Trail,

You are cordially invited to an exclusive fundraising auction on Thursday 4^th May at the St. Brides Foundation in London. With live performances, refreshments and top auctioneers from Bonhams, it is sure to be a fantastic evening. The artists involved are a mixture of famous names and up-and-coming new talent who have created authentic and unique pieces for all tastes and budgets.  All sales will benefit the recovery of Frogmore Paper Mill after the fire of January 2022, helping the Trust to re-build an accessible, innovative and educational museum on our working industrial heritage site, which reflects the Gade Valley’s unique position in world history. 

The Fire

On 22^nd January 2022, two arsonists started a fire at The Apsley Paper Trail Trust’s Frogmore Paper Mill site. The emergency services were summoned within minutes. Thirteen fire crews attended from the neighbouring regions but despite their superb efforts, the fire resulted in the demolition of the Frogmore Visitor Centre and the loss of many irreplaceable artefacts. The emergency services could not have been better and most of the staff watched the conflagration in stunned silence.

Due to wind direction and brick walls paper production, the archive and some heritage workshop equipment were untouched, however, the museum display space, conference room, gallery, shop and café, housed in original storage sheds were either destroyed by fire, damaged by intense heat or thick smoke.

A major blow but the resilience and determination of the staff meant that 2 days later were met and created a plan of action. This site is too important to lose. The Frogmore Paper Mill has a heritage to tell the world about and during the last year, many new discoveries have come to light. A year later insurance is settled but they are still unable to invite the visitors who are its lifeblood, onto the site. Much planning is underway and they wish to create a new temporary Visitor Centre to trial new ideas and resume public access. This costs money. The new Visitor Centre will need to last for a few years before a new, sustainable, contemporary in approach, user friendly, replacement can be created.

The Auction

To this end, Apsley Paper Trail is organising an Art Auction.  A very committed volunteer and Education Manager have spent many months, contacting some very well-known names in the arts. Some you will be familiar with others less so but all fabulously talented and at the top of their tree. Apsley Paper Trail has been absolutely delighted at the support it has received from lovers of paper. There is a limited edition Moorcroft Pottery vase, a painting by Akash Bhatt who some years back won the BP Painting prize, Martin Frost one of the last heritage vanishing fore-edge painters and contemporary humour from Steve Bell and Zoom Rockman.

Please look at the Auction page and enjoy the artwork. If you can make a bid that would be great, or even better please come along to the Auction, overseen by two Bonham’s auctioneers who are offering their expertise for free.  The Auction will be held on Thursday 4^th May at 6pm, with an opening performance by Simon Lamb, poet and storyteller. His latest book was illustrated by another familiar name, that of Chris Riddell.