bandstands

Sunderland, barnes park

Lost Art Limited were commissioned to complete the complete restoration of the bandstand in Barnes Park, Sunderland. The work also involved the sympathetic addition of new access for wheelchair users. The Bandstand had originally been supplied by The Baker Company of Newport and whilst this may appear surprising due to the geographical distance from the supplier and the relative closeness of the major Scottish foundries, such as MacFarlane and The Sun Foundry as well as other producers of decorative structural ironwork such as MacDowall Steven, there is some degree of explanation in that, apparently the Baker family had their origins in The Sunderland area.

The restoration project yielded a stunning example of a bandstand originating from a foundry other than the main suppliers. The work included the production of a new roof terminal, the replacement of the surrounding railing panels in order to match the original design as shown in the Baker Company Catalogue held in The Lost Art Archive as well as the previously mentioned addition of a ramp along with suitable railings and posts. The roof was completely recovered using zinc sheeting and roof embellishments such as the antifixae at the edges were also cast from newly produced patterns.