Appeal to restore historic folk music headquarters in Primrose Hill

A BID to raise £200,000 to restore the main hall at the Primrose Hill home of the English Folk Dance and Song Society has been launched. Cecil Sharp House, in Regents Park Road, has been the headquarters for the society since it moved into the purpose-built building in 1930. But its principal room, Kennedy Hall, designed by architects Godfrey Pinkerton and Henry Fletcher, is in desperate need of a major overhaul to return it to its former glory. Half of the total cost of £400,000 has already been met through a grant from the Arts Council, but now the society hopes to raise the rest through individual donations. http://www.camdennewjournal.com/folkmusicappeal Painted by the celebrated English artist Ivon Hitchens, today this historic, 60ft X 20ft piece is being restored. Jim Dimond is leading the team of conservators, who are painstakingly repairing the paint and the canvas using a range of techniques. Despite hanging for nearly 70 years, sections have survived well. It has previously been cleaned to take off years of cigarette smoke and tar from its surface. Now the main dangers are dust and car pollution. http://www.camdenreview.com/reviews/features/restoring-the-cecil-sharp-mural CJB