Lytham St Annes Art Collection


The Lytham St Annes Art Collection is a public art collection of over 240 artworks in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire. Fylde Borough Council are the custodians of the paintings, sculptures, prints and artefacts that are mostly held within the Town Hall in St Annes. The collection was started in 1925 by the donation of The Herd Lassie, painted by Richard Ansdell, to the townspeople of Lytham St Annes, Lancashire. It was donated by John Booth, son of the founder of the grocery store chain Booths. The collection of 25 works is now one of the largest public collections of Ansdell's paintings.
One of the most notable paintings in the collection is The Vision of Catherine of Aragon by Henry Fuseli, which is estimated to be worth about £1.5-2 million, according to a 2013 valuation by Christie's, making it by far the most valuable item in the collection.
In 2008 the Fylde Gallery was opened above the Booths grocery store in Lytham to display some of the collection, and it is periodically open to the public. In June 2013 the Fylde Decorative and Fine Arts Society was awarded £24,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund to promote the collection.

Selected artists from the Lytham St Annes Art Collection