Spring 2015 Update
It has been a long winter at Bisley, not necessarily as cold as it could have been, but certainly damp enough and windy enough! After a busy Christmas events period, the we are now eagerly awaiting the start of the shooting season proper.
The Clubhouse has had some staff changes over the winter. Katie, having kept a firm hand on the tiller for the past ten years, has now left Bisley to pursue a degree in History and French in Canterbury; however, the breach has been admirably filled by the fortuitous availability of Julia Evans, formerly manageress of the Canadian Pavillion here on camp, who has taken up the reins and hit the ground running, filling the void left in both the office and the kitchen. Nathan, our Chef, left in the autumn to pursue a new career as a full-time father to his young son, and the role of Membership Secretary, although still filled by Robert, is now a part-time post. Shane Hancock has taken up a new part-time role as Shooting Administrator, and as such is the first point of contact for all matters relating to club shoots etc.
On the shooting front, club shoots have now been arranged for at least the first half of the year, the calendar is available in the shooting section of this website. If you would like to book in, please note we have simplified our system – the old website booking in page no longer exists, please just email shootingadmin@artistsrifles.com to be put on the list for a shoot, mentioning whether you need a rifle or ammunition to be supplied. This helps us ensure all necessary preparations have been made prior to the shoot.
The Clubhouse itself has had some winter maintenance, mainly upstairs, and we hope to be able to increase our accommodation by at least one room for this summer season, as we know we have more members who would like to stay than we do beds currently!
The club continues to enjoy a steady influx of new members, so please do say hello to any new faces around the building and the firing point.
Please note, the Clubhouse will not be open on Easter Monday.
Summer 2014 Update
It has been a busy 6 weeks or so at the Clubhouse, with the Royal Navy & Royal Marines skill at arms meet, the TA Queen’s Prize, the Cadets & Schools and the normal Imperial competitions, followed by the unusual spectacle of the Hot Rod Hayride 2014 – Bisley flooded with modified classic cars and associated personalities. Of special note during the Imperial was the success of member James Mehta, getting through to the final.
Still to come before summer is up is the National Smallbore championships, organised by the NSRA, as well as the usual programme of club shoots.
Eagle-eyed memebrs will have seen Bisley featured on BBC Countryfile’s recent slot about shooting sports, filmed at the Clays and on Century. However, you will also have noticed that the clubhouse managed to stay covert, being off the edge of the screen for the entire time! However, we have had our fair share of celebrity spotting – none other than CBBC’s Dick & Dom at the Clubhouse in June, filming a slot on Penny Farthing bicycles for a forthcoming family-viewing factual/science programme – watch out for this in a few months time.
We have lots to look forward to in the Autumn, including all the usual full bore, smallbore and gallery shoots, as well as a guest day and some exciting guest speakers to be announced very soon.
The Artists Rifles Exhibition
The Artists Rifles Art Exhibition Currently Showing at Southampton Art Gallery and then going on tour…. From Pre-Raphaelites to Passchendaele At the outbreak of the First World War, Paul Nash, a prominent artist, gave up painting and enlisted in the Artists Rifles, eventually fighting with the Hampshire Regiment.
Members of the Artists Rifles regiment came from a host of artistic backgrounds – painters, poets, actors, architects. Early membership was a who’s who of the Victorian art world: Burne Jones, Rossetti, Millais, Leighton and Holman Hunt. The First World War saw a new stream of creative people join its ranks: Frank Dobson, Charles Jagger, Wilfred Owen, Edward Thomas and John Nash who went ‘over the top’ with the regiment in 1917. The exhibition will present an impressive shortlist of artists, spanning over 80 years of membership of the regiment, with a special literature-linked spoken word film commission. The exhibition will look at the artists, the art they produced and the regiment itself so will also feature Artists Rifles loaned objects such as costume and memorabilia. Capitalizing on the strengths of the collections within the partnership, the exhibition will showcase selected works from Southampton City Art Gallery, which holds work by John Everett Millais, Holman Hunt, Paul Nash, John Nash and John Lavery. In addition, loans will be arriving from the Imperial War Museum, British Council Collection, the Royal Academy, the Arts Council and many more regional and national institutions.
The exhibition will tour to the following venues in 2014: · Southampton City Art Gallery: 4 April – 28 June 2014 · The Sainsbury Gallery at Willis Museum: 5 July – 27 September 2014 · The Gallery at Gosport Discovery Centre: 4 October – 27 December 2014 Image: Lake Zillibeke 1918 by Paul Nash, copyright the British Council.