The Penny Salon Micro-Gallery at Ongar Station
Free admission! Gallery open whenever trains are running
Current Exhibition: "The Heyday of London Transport"
This exhibition follows the fortunes and progress of London Transport from its creation in 1933 to its replacement by London Regional Transport in 1984. There is an emphasis on the different types of buses and Underground rolling stock used; and also on the heritage legacy through museum locations and Steam on the Met.
Future Exhibitions
An interesting and entertaining programme of presentations is planned for the coming year, including "A plethora of pub signs" and "The Heyday of London Transport". Watch this space or our news pages for further details.
To coincide with the Steam Gala between 8 and 10 June, there will be a presentation from Malcolm Root, a Fellow of the Guild of Railway Artists , with the emphasis on his inspirational transport paintings into the Eastern Counties. Malcolm hails from Halstead in Essex, and his work is well known, especially for the limited edition prints available of many of his major works over the years, such as "Signalling Winter", set at Harringay West.
Planned exhibitions include:
- June 9 and 10: A guest appearance by noted railway artist Malcolm Root FGRA including the unveiling of his new painting of Epping
- June 11 - July 1: The Great Eastern Railway Legacy
- July 2 - 31: 'A Plethora of pubs' - pubs and pub signs
- August: Barry and After - 50 years since the end of mainline steam
Look out for further details of these exhibitions here or on our news pages and via social media nearer the time.
The Gallery
The Epping Ongar Railway opened the ‘micro-gallery’ at Ongar Station on Saturday 27 May 2017. The gallery is in the Ladies Waiting Room at the station. A railway volunteer and professional photographer who specialises in steam photography, Geoff Silcock, has worked alongside the Epping Ongar Railway Volunteer Society members to transform the room into a place to display photographs and pictures. Mr Silcock has worked with local photographic and historical societies to bring a programme of interesting and relevant exhibitions to the Railway.
The free bijou exhibition area has been named "The Penny Salon" and will be open whenever trains are running to provide interest for passengers.
The output of "The Penny Salon" consists partially of the well established work of Eastender Reg Batten, who achieved his 100th birthday before he passed away in 2014. Reg spent much of his leisure time from the 1930s until he was well into his 80s, recording images from the now bygone world around him, especially from around Essex; Malcolm Batten is the custodian of his fathers work, and continues the family tradition, with countless photographic images published in magazines, plus several articles to his credit, and with soon to be published books on related transport subjects; and Geoff Silcock, with well over 50 years overall involved in the pursuit of his passion for especially steam trains, including its related photography and railway journalism content, with over 100 published articles in specialist magazines over the last 25 years... Plus he assures everyone that he also found the time to spend over 45 years in the photographic "D&P" profession from the early 1960s...
The inaugural month through to 18 June 2017 hosted The Essex Monochrome Society with Black and White images mainly from in and around Essex, including steam trains. This was followed by an exhibition by the Ongar Historical Millenium Society titled "The Railway Comes to Essex". "Bygone Essex" was the third exhibition to be held in the gallery, and a further selection of Reg Batten's iconic images will appear in a future exhibtion. The 2017 season concluded with a selection of images from by long- time steam photographer, troubadour writer, and former Sentimental Journeys charter organisor Geoff Silcock, entitled Steam in the Frame, taking viewers on a journey from 1961 right through to the present day Epping Ongar Railway.
Fry's Chocolate Cabinet
The c.1890s "Frys Chocolate" glass cabinet,that was gifted to the Epping Ongar Railway, and refurbished by Malcolm Batten forms an important part of The Penny Salon's presentation of artifacts allied to the main displays.
Why "The Penny Salon"?
The name "The Penny Salon" is taken tongue in cheek from the c. 1865 built station rooms other use as its original Ladies Waiting Room.