Visitors to a County Durham venue will soon be able to find out what a photography exhibition, Wensleydale, and a 150-year anniversary have in common.
Commissioned by Durham County Council, and being displayed at Bishop Auckland Town Hall, Following Ewe will bring visitors a snapshot of a rare breed of sheep at a milestone point in their history at the exhibition.
The work of local photographer Elaine Vizor, the exhibition celebrates the iconic Wensleydale sheep breed, and its official naming at the 17th Great Yorkshire Show in 1876. It invites visitors to peek at some of the work involved in rearing the sheep, and their appearances at agricultural shows.
Wensleydale longwool sheep are rare and on the Rare Breed Survival Trust at-risk register. The wool is highly sought-after for a range of textiles and crafts and offers natural sustainability.
Elaine was born and raised in Bishop Auckland, but despite a passion for photography, she only started pursuing her interest when she entered her fifties. After enrolling on a number of courses, one of her portraits was displayed in London’s National Portrait Gallery, as a Taylor Wessing Photographic Portraiture Prize finalist.
Her exhibition will be on display at Bishop Auckland Town Hall from Monday 8 June to Saturday 29 August and will be free-to-view from 10am to 4pm, Monday to Saturday, during this period.
Cllr Karen Allison, Durham County Council’s Cabinet member for leisure, tourism, regeneration and high street, said: “This will be a delightful exhibition from a County Durham photographer who clearly has a great passion for her craft. The Wensleydale breed is rare, and, by commissioning this exhibition, we are happy to help promote it and ensure that it flourishes for generations to come.
“Bishop Auckland Town Hall offers a fantastic space to promote the beauty in photography, and we look forward to seeing you there.”
Elaine said: “I see my work as a way to explore the extraordinary in the ordinary, to find interest in the hidden world, to tell a story, and to share that with others. We’re never too old to follow a dream, or too young either. It may work, it may not, but it’s worth a try. We might even surprise ourselves.”
Find out more about the upcoming exhibition, and other events at www.bishopaucklandtownhall.org.uk.
