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Lavender, the Potter and Mark
Lavender Groves, the name on much of her work, was born in 1932 and spent her early years in Yorkshire. She never went to a formal school but was taught at home. She attributed her excellent French, better than her English, she said, to a French governess. Her grandparents were a great influence on her life and it was her grandmother who persuaded her to go to The Chelsea School of Art. By then she was living in Chelsea with her mother and stepfather at a time when Chelsea was home to many distinguished artists and writers – Augustus John and Agatha Christie were among her acquaintances and Henry Moore and Graham Sutherland amount the teachers at the Chelsea School. Lavender studied oil painting and pottery. It was at the Chelsea School of Art that she me Mark Beard, who was not only a professional and successful musician, but also a talented potter who shared her quirky sense of humour. They moved to Upton in the late 60’s where they specialised in ‘one offs’, special drawings for birthdays, weddings etc. Lavender did peoples’ pets, wildlife, heraldry, birds pedigree Bulls, Zodiac signs and Mark did musical themes on fiddle dishes, some with faces and famous quotations.
The Museum
Lavender and Mark both loved antiques, music, art and collecting.
Mark had a collection of Blue and White Staffordshire transfer ware, and they added to it whenever they saw anything with a design they hadn’t got already. One day he said; “We’ve got enough stuff to start a museum!” They thought no more about it until the Cromwell Cottages came on the market in 1993. One had been a restaurant for several years. At the time, they thought5 what a marvellous museum it would make, and then a legacy meant that they were able to buy both 16, and the cottage next door, no 18 Church Street. By this time Mark was not at all well, and Lavender asked a good friend Mary Wilkinson to help them.
Restoration of the building was undertaken to make the most of its original history, parquet floor and oak beams. A local craftsman still maintains the cabinets throughout the building.
As soon as local people heard that a museum was being opened, they started to offer items as possible exhibits. Only a few donors can be mentioned as examples, e.g. John Talbot-Cooper, the retiring chemist, gave a whole case full of old pharmaceutical items, including pill makes, and dry/wet measures all of which had been used by his father before him, when he too had been Upton’s chemist. Lord Coventry gave a glover’s vice, and the sword which played so important a part in “The Green Stone”. Mr Walton’s Tailor’s workshop came on loan from the county.
In 1998 the Museum became a charitable trust and, in 2015 this became a Chritable Incorporated Organisation. (Number 1160419).