On the 110th anniversary of his birth, we look back at the achievements of a pioneering librarian and curator who revolutionised the collection at Alfred East Gallery.
John Burden (pictured above) retired on his 65th birthday, 19th April 1980, leaving behind a career dedicated to public service. Working across four different libraries, he had learned his profession during periods in Bath, Reading and Swindon, before settling in Kettering in 1953 where he took on the role of Borough Librarian and Curator. It was here that he made the greatest impact, successfully running the town’s Library for 27 years.
Burden later reflected on this time in his life as his “golden age”. During this period when the Library, Museum, and Gallery were managed by one person, he was determined to make a positive change to a service that had already become an integral part of the local community. In 1999, he wrote that when he arrived in Kettering “the service was in the early stages of a period of change… in my time we were able to take over two nearby buildings to move the museum and the reading room”. This marked the first time the Museum had its own dedicated building (Westfield) and brought the historic Manor House into public use.
He recognised the benefits of modernising the spaces, meeting the changing needs of visitors and providing new additions to the Library. The book stock increased by 50%, totalling 150,000 books by the time he retired. He introduced the music room in 1966, where vinyl records were available to Library users for the first time, and wrote proudly that “we were the first council department to have an electric typewriter and an electric floor-polisher!”.
But it’s arguably in Alfred East Gallery where Burden’s impact was the greatest, an impact that is still keenly felt today.
During the first 40 years of the Gallery’s existence, temporary exhibitions displayed alongside the collection provided Kettering with a vibrant and exciting place to visit. But the shadow of Alfred East dominated the Gallery and, despite having a good reputation, no new additions were made and the collection was prevented from developing. The Gallery began to stagnate and lose its attraction.
This was to change when Burden became curator. He brought fresh energy and new ideas to the Gallery, creating an exhibition programme that resulted in Kettering becoming a well-known venue for national touring exhibitions. His efforts were soon recognised, organising a Royal visit and personally escorting Queen Elizabeth II around the Gallery in 1965.
Burden quickly established a radical new acquisitions policy, enabling the Gallery to buy contemporary artwork and build upon the foundation which began with the generosity of Alfred East.
Ecole Communale by Tristram Hillier RA, purchased in 1963.
It was this policy that led to art advisors being used to identify promising artists from across the UK and beyond. Under Burden’s direction, funding was secured and a budget was set aside to allow the purchase of modern art, adding contemporary pieces from exciting 20th Century artists to Kettering’s art collection.
Five Contrasting Forms by Paule Vézelay, purchased in 1973.
The collection, previously dominated by Edwardian and Victorian artists, was given a new impetus and a new lease of life. Kettering’s Gallery began to acquire artworks from world renowned artists such as Sir Howard Hodgkin, Eduardo Paolozzi, Joan Eardley, and Sérgio de Carmago.
The Violinist by Sir Stanley Spencer CBE RA (purchased in 1955).
Another contemporary artist who saw his artwork added to the Gallery’s collection during this exciting period was Christopher Fiddes. His oil painting, Quoiting at the Rentons, depicts the traditional Scottish game of Quoits (often pronounced as “Kites”), played on a rough pitch at the rear of a village pub.
Quoiting at the Rentons by Christopher Fiddes.
We spoke to Fiddes recently, now in his 90th year. “I have always thought highly of the Kettering gallery”, he fondly recalled. “In those distant days when John Burden and the Kettering novelist JL Carr were very much part of the cultural scene in Kettering, I was a frequent visitor.”
Fiddes and Burden discuss the new painting during its presentation to Alfred East Gallery, 1962.
Today, the collection at Alfred East Gallery has grown dramatically after Alfred East’s initial donation in 1913. Now totalling almost 1,000 artworks, the collection is rich and diverse, boasting internationally recognised artists from a broad range of mediums, and that is thanks in large part to the passion and enthusiasm of John Burden. The examples of modern art that Burden sought to include over 50 years ago are now some of the most valuable and interesting artworks held in Kettering’s art collection.
His foresight of a unified service and the need to modernise the buildings has never been more prescient. On the day of his retirement in 1980, he was asked what he would have liked to have done if he could go back. He said “I would have liked to have seen the library extended. We make full use of every square foot of space”.
When he passed away in 2008, he was described by his son and daughter in his Guardian obituary as a “polite, undemonstrative, gentle and loving man… he achieved a great deal without making a fuss”.
Hillier, Vézelay, and Spencer © Artist Estates / Bridgeman Images