This in from Luci Gosling, Sales Manager at the Mary Evans Picture Library, a quick report on their open day as part of London Open House Weekend 17/18 Sept – PAN report 7 Sept
Hi Will,
I wondered if you might be interested in doing something on the roaring success (!) of our participation in the Open House London event for PAN?
The library was busy throughout Saturday 17th with people already waiting to go on the first tour before the official 10am opening time. We had over 200 visitors of all ages, many of whom were local South East London residents, keen to finally see inside our building, a familiar Blackheath landmark. From 10am to 4:30pm we conducted 17 separate tours, taking visitors round the building, pointing out the typical Arts and Crafts style details, explaining about how we work as a picture library and revealing some of the treasures in the archive. One of our staff, Gill, had also delved into the building’s origins and history, using the information to form a mini exhibition that was perused by visitors waiting to set off on the next tour.
above – Luci welcoming another tour
Our visitors book is now groaning with around 80 separate comments including the following remarks:
‘A fascinating insight’
‘Hurray. Now we know. Delightful and fascinating’
‘An incredibly special place. So glad to share it today.’
‘Treasure trove!’
‘Amazing – could stay and browse for days!’
‘My dream place to work – fantastic.’
‘Enchanting slice of history’
‘Thanks for allowing us in – and a great tour.’
(And, our favourite) ‘A National Treasure!’
Best wishes
Luci