The blog for the Borthwick Institute for Archives at the University of York.
Written by Sally-Anne Shearn, Genesis Project Archivist. In March 1915 an application was made for two little girls to be admitted to St Stephen’s Orphanage in York. Contrary to its name, those admitted to St Stephen’s were not necessarily orphans in the accepted sense of the word, the rules of admission required only that girls … Continue reading A Tale of Two Sisters
Written by Kerstin Doble, Project Curator: Who Were the Aero Girls? Nearly a year after the search for the real life Rowntree Aero Girls began, I am delighted to announce the launch of a website dedicated to the remarkable stories of the women and men behind this collection of postwar paintings. As many as 40 … Continue reading New website reveals the story of the lost Aero Girls (and boys)
Written by Kerstin Doble, National Archives Trainee. Earlier this year I introduced you to Rowntree’s Aero Girls paintings, which were commissioned for use in Aero chocolate advertising in print and television from 1951 to 1957. Since then we’ve managed to track down the only living painter who worked on the 1950s campaign, Frederick Deane RP, … Continue reading Who’s that Girl? Who were the Aero Girls?
Written by Kerstin Doble, National Archives Trainee. Paintings in an archive? I was surprised to find 17 portraits of young women nestling in the Rowntree company archive here at the Borthwick Institute. I previously worked for Tate Gallery, organising art exhibitions, and joined the archives sector expecting to be immersed in a landscape of mostly … Continue reading Anna, Alice, Wendy… introducing the Aero Girls
Followers of our Twitter feed, and keen visitors, may have noticed a new exhibition which has gone into the space outside our offices on the second floor of the Borthwick. This new exhibition, Best of the Borthwick, was designed by our archival trainees for 2012/13, Zoe and Amy, who have now finished their placement at … Continue reading The Best of the Borthwick