It was a cold and misty January day when we decided to go to Port Sunlight Lady Lever Art Gallery to see the Henri Matisse “Drawing with Scissors” special exhibition. This free touring exhibition is on display until 15th March 2020. The artist produced these famous cut-outs during his eighties in the last years of his life when he was confined to his bed.
If you have never visited the Lady Lever before you will be impressed with one of the UK’s outstanding collections of fine and decorative art. The gallery is housed in a beautiful building within Port Sunlight conservation area. The whole collection and the village itself was the concept of the philanthropist Lord Leverhulme the founder of Lever Brothers (now the global firm of Unilever) There are hundreds of items – paintings, sculptures, Chinese ceramics, furniture and the finest collection of Wedgwood jasperware in the world. There is also Lever’s Masonic Collection,which is the most important of its kind in Britain.
Although there is a cafe within the art gallery building, we chose this time to take our refreshment in the Tudor Rose Tea Room. This is situated opposite Port Sunlight railway station, so is ideal if you are travelling by train. (It is 20 minutes by rail from Liverpool or Chester) The address of this cosy cafe is 88a Greendale Road, Port Sunlight, Wirral, CH62 4XD. It is open every day from 10-4. The building used to be the village Post Office. There is a varied menu but we chose our favourite (you’ve guessed it!) scone, with butter, cream, jam and a pot of tea.