2005

HERITAGE DAYS A HUGE SUCCESS

BIGGEST OPEN DAYS YET
On the weekend of 10th and 11th September 2005 Godalming celebrated its rich heritage with free of charge open properties, guided walks, exhibitions and traditional entertainments, all part of the national Heritage Open Days.

Stephen was very involved and it was a great success, his walks saw more than double last year’s numbers, the Sea Exhibition attracted over five hundred visitors, and throughout the weekend the town was alive with the music and bells of Morris Dancers. A fantastic time which has at last attracted the attention of the council and other groups in the town, all want it bigger next year.

STEPHEN GODDARD'S CHRISTMAS EXHIBITION

CHRISTMAS EXHIBITION
PEPPERPOT, GODALMING
SATURDAY 3rd DECEMBER 2005

Saturday December 3rd was Godalming's Christmas Carnival Day, Stephen held a Christmas exhibition in the Pepperpot.
Open from 10.00am till 4.00pm on the day, the exhibition showed a variety of Stephen's work.

During the summer Stephen had been working outdoors around Godalming, you may well have seen him, producing a watercolour book of paintings. This featured in the exhibition as well as the original ink drawings of the town used in the Heritage Open Days brochure. Also a collection of the ever popular TREEMENDOUS winter tree silhouette paintings.

GODDARD'S GODALMING - THE BOOK!

Some of this summer's watercolours and other ink drawings have been pulled together into "GODDARD'S GODALMING", Stephen's first booklet of work, still being put together as this is written, it will be a limited edition volume that will be signed and numbered by the artist. Available in December.

STOP PRESS - YOU CAN ONLY DO SO MUCH
It was rather ambitious to advertise a book for sale at Christmas this year. Rather than rushing it, the book has been postponed but is still to come one day – watch this space.

COUGHDROP BLOG?

This website is being taken control of by the artist himself (He's got to learn to use a computer at last Ha! Ha!) Taking over from Bluefire who did a great job of getting this site running, Stephen hopes to keep it well updated with art news and also a bit of a blog, not only of the ramblings of his deranged mind, but also the voyages of the Coughdrop the site is named after.

Not that a couple of potters around the edge of Chichester Harbour from Langstone are that exciting but this little wooden boat from the late 1950s is still sailing, watch this space and find out more about her.

COUGHDROP

Our Little boat Coughdrop has had a little use sailing in Chichester and Langstone Harbours this year but did not get out as often as we would have liked. Now is the time for laying up in the dinghy park and winter maintenance with a view to a more active 2006. There is lots to do, so over the winter the Langstone Sailing Club Bar should see a rise in profits from our visits.

THE BIG DRAW
Last year with the great publicity brought about by Rolf Harris drawing in Trafalgar Square, producing a picture the size of a London Bus; Stephen also got involved in this national celebration of drawing, running two Big Draws producing huge pictures with all who wished to take part, at Godalming Museum and for the National Trust at Uppark near South Harting, on the South Downs.

The Big Draws that Stephen ran this year were as follows :-

SATURDAY 8TH OCTOBER - GODALMING MUSEUM
To celebrate the family, making drawings around hands, plus for the more advanced, drawing faces.

SATURDAY 15TH OCTOBER - FARNCOMBE INFANT SCHOOL
To celebrate the centenary of the school, Stephen will be encouraging all participants to draw something about the school and/or the last 100 years of history.

MONDAY 24TH AND TUESDAY 25TH OCTOBER
UPPARK HOUSE, SOUTH HARTING, WEST SUSSEX
To celebrate Trafalgar 200 as the Solent can be seen from the grounds.

GODALMING'S SECRET HERITAGE EXPOSED

On the weekend of 10th and 11th September 2005 Godalming celebrates its rich heritage with free of charge open properties, guided walks, exhibitions and traditional entertainments, all part of the national Heritage Open Days.

Stephen has had a leading role in organising these events in Godalming, not only as an artist, but as a local historian he will be leading two guided walks from under the Pepperpot starting both days at 10.30am and ending up at a pub to watch the start of the day's displays of Morris dancing. Over the weekend five teams of dancers will be in town.

The walks are themed as follows :-

SATURDAY - FROM SAXON SETTLERS TO COMMUTERS
SUNDAY - MILLS AND BOOZE WALK

Throughout the weekend (Daily 10.00am to 5.00pm) upstairs in the Pepperpot, Stephen is putting on the exhibition:

THE PORTSMOUTH ROAD AND THE SEA

The history of the road that, from Henry VIII's time onwards took travellers from the capital to the home of the Royal Navy, Nelson 200 years ago travelled through Godalming on his way to sail for Trafalgar. Also the great days of sail are shown from the local coastal shipping to the last days of the Australian grain ships in photographs of the time. Copies of Stephen's paintings from recent gatherings of tall ships will be on show as well.

For more information about all Heritage Open Days events please visit www.heritageopendays.org

GODALMING HERITAGE OPEN DAYS
SATURDAY 10TH AND SUNDAY 11TH SEPTEMBER 2005
PROGRAMME OF EVENTS AND OPEN HOUSES

2004

Treemendous

Trees will again be the subject of an exhibition to be held at Godalming Museum in early Summer 2004. In the exhibition, to be titles "Treemendous", Stephen will take the bold colours he has used in his murals and look at the structures, shapes and patterns made by trees, branches and twigs.

The exhibition runs from May 25 to June 5 2004, 10am to 5pmTuesdays to Saturdays. Entry is free.

For further information please contact Stephen or call him directly on 07780 996856.

Blue and soul stars at House of Blues

As a result of his successful "Tall Ships, Trees and Trains" exhibition in September 2003, Stephen was commissioned to paint murals of blues and soul stars at "The House of Blues", Wharf Street, Godalming. This expansion into big portraits has been a challenge and as with all pub openings Stephen had to work to a tight deadline. Nevertheless Stephen enjoyed the work greatly and he is adding another project; painting people, in particular dancers at carnival with a view for a future exhibition.

In the pipeline

As well as "Treemendous", Stephen is planning a number of future exhibitions. He hopes to take his tall ships and other maritime paintings to the South Coast. He hopes to find a venue close to where he sails his 14ft dinghy in Langstone and Chichester Harbours.

The architecture of South West Surrey still has plenty of subject for Stephen's pen and brush. This year he has done a fair amount of work with the Godalming Trust for Heritage Weekend. These sketches, plus views of trees, boats and figures in ink are building up into a good collection. Stephen plans sometime during 2004 to publish a limited edition book of these sketches.

2003

Tall Ships, Trees and Trains

Stephen's last exhibition "Tall Ships, Trees and Trains" in September 2003 was successful not just for sales but by creating a lot of interest and plenty of useful feedback, which has helped him choose his artistic paths into the future.

The exhibition offered for view and sale a collection of recent works; paintings of the local area with particular emphasis on trees. These were complimented with depictions of the great tall ships which even now, in the twenty first century, still sail the oceans of the world. Plus those grand old ladies of steam, the preserved main line locomotives that continue to add romance to the national railway network.

The exhibition ran from September 2 to September 27 at the Godalming Museum, 109a High Street, Godalming, Surrey. Read the original press release here.

Exposition de Tableaux a vendre per Stephen Goddard a Bar Penelope, Ulysse Village Naturiste, Port Leucate, France

In 2003 Stephen presented his first summer exhibition by the Mediterranean, presenting views of the the Leucate area.

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