The Art of Conservation offers a glimpse into the process of art conservation and shows visitors, how the experts at North East Museums, preserve and restore artworks to ensure their longevity and integrity. 

The Art of Conservation celebrates many artworks, some of which have never been on display, and shines a light on the vital work of conservation. This exhibition is a unique opportunity for the public to step behind the scenes and discover how art is preserved and protected.

In this exhibition, discover how Richard Hobson (1945–2004) captured the changing landscapes, industry and communities of the North East.

From bustling shipyards to rugged moorlands and beyond, explore how Richard captured an industrial landscape and a way of life which was on the cusp of change. 

Hobson was possessed of a curious eye, a passion for nature and the great outdoors, and he lived for his art. His paintings feature looming power station cooling towers, and the dilapidated remnants of past industrial might. He also recorded the spectacular natural world of the North Country, on his frequent rambles in the countryside, accompanied by his wife Pat and son Harry. Above all, Hobson painted because he saw beauty before him, no matter what the subject, warts and all. 

From the ship repair yards at the mouth of the River Tyne, to the bleak moorlands of the North Pennines and the North East coast’s windswept beaches, Richard Hobson (1945-

2004) recorded the industry, nature and communities of our region. He captured an industrial landscape and a way of life which was on the cusp of change. Hobson was possessed of a curious eye, a passion for nature and the great outdoors and he lived for his art. His paintings feature looming power station cooling towers, and the dilapidated remnants of past industrial might. He also recorded the spectacular natural world of the North Country, on his frequent rambles in the countryside, accompanied by his wife Pat and son Harry.

Above all, Hobson painted because he saw beauty before him, no matter what the subject, warts and all.

Richard was born in Derby, but his family relocated to Newcastle when he was very young. The family lived in Heaton, where Richard also went to school. His father Alfred was a lecturer at Durham University. Alfred wrote guide books on Northumberland, and Richard was able to show off his early talent for art by drawing illustrations for his father’s books produced while accompanying his dad on long hikes crisscrossing the Northumbrian countryside.

After attending art college in Newcastle, and a spell working in London Richard moved to the Cairngorms to take up a job as a warden. Richard loved being close to nature, and especially birdlife, and he continued to paint. Then came a turning point in his life, when he studied for a diploma in the conservation of easel paintings at Gateshead College.

He found employment as a paintings conservator at The Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle, where he would go on to work for 31 years.

He loved being a conservator, working on some of the world’s greatest artworks at The Bowes, as well as freelance projects for other clients such as the National Trust, and even restoring miners’ lodge banners.

His 3-day a week contract at The Bowes gave Richard the all-important time he wanted to continue to create his own art.

Northumbrian artist Birtley Aris (1927-2021) was a great friend and inspiration to Richard. Birtley said of Richard, “He captured the essence of the Northern landscape, expressing the bleakness and the beauty without going for the simply picturesque”. Although he passed away relatively young, aged just 59 in 2004, Richard had produced a substantial body of work in his lifetime, much of which records a lost social and industrial history. “His work will always have an historical interest in addition to an aesthetic quality”, said Birtley. Richard’s work was exhibited in many solo and group exhibitions in his lifetime, and is in public and private collections at home and abroad.

Image Details
Date: 24 July 2025
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/50s
ISO: 125
Licensing: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

Image Details
Date: 24 March 2023
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/50s
ISO: 250
Licensing: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

Image details
Date: 3 November 2020
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/20s
ISO: 640
Licensing: Image of a Bowes Museum asset. This image cannot be licensed.

Portraiture is a very old art form going back at least to ancient Egypt, where it flourished from about 5,000 years ago. Before the invention of photography, a painted, sculpted, or drawn portrait was the only way to record the appearance of someone. A portrait is an artistic representation of a person intending to display their likeness, personality and even mood.

But portraits have always been more than just a record. They have been used to show the power, importance, virtue, beauty, wealth, taste, learning or other qualities of the sitter. Portraits have almost always been flattering, and painters who refused to flatter tended to find their work rejected. Among leading modern artists, portrait painting to order became increasingly rare. Instead artists paint their friends and lovers in whatever way they pleased. At the same time, photography became the most important medium for traditional portraiture, making what was formerly an expenensive luxury product affordable for almost

Image details
Date: 14 June 2019
Camera body: iPhone 7 Plus
Lens: Wide Camera 28mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 28mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/9s
ISO: 100
Licensing: Image of a North East Museums asset. This image cannot be licensed.