It’s not every day we get to see a masterpiece from The National Gallery’s London collection hanging in Thornton Heath Library, and sheep in Trumble Gardens. However, that’s what happened when this week, John Constable’s The Cornfield arrived in Croydon as part of a nationwide tour.
The value of accessing a work of this stature in a local library, making it accessible to all, is immeasurable. The painting is on display as part of the National Gallery’s programme of visits during This is Croydon, our year as London Borough of Culture.
The Cornfield appears in Thornton Heath Library alongside a fantastic photography exhibition by local artist Ameena Rojee, called Rural Croydon. Her stunning images showcase a wilder and perhaps more unexpected side of Croydon, exploring conservational grazing that takes place in some of the chalk grassland at the borough’s edges.
At the opening of the exhibition on Tuesday, it was great to see local school children so engaged in learning about Constable and Rural Croydon. Also, enjoying meeting farm animals from Vauxhall City Farm who paid a special visit to Trumble Gardens in celebration of the launch. Don’t miss The Cornfield at Thornton Heath Library until this Sunday; Rural Croydon is on show until the end of July, before moving to New Addington. Find out more at www.culturecroydon.com.
Croydon is full of talented young athletes, many of whom came together to receive awards from GLL Sports Foundation at a special ceremony last night.
It was a pleasure to meet the young people and to find out how these financial awards of up to £500 will help cover essential costs when competing nationwide and internationally. I wish them the very best of luck on their sporting journeys.
Wednesday (5 July) was a special day when the borough joined the nation in celebrating 75 years of the NHS. I was proud to attend the flag raising for NHS, Social Care and Frontline Workers’ Day at the Town Hall. Thank you to our frontline heroes – firefighters, police, the NHS and all our council staff for all your hard work, dedication, and resilience in serving our local community.
Jason Perry
Executive Mayor of Croydon
