The collection is largely made up of works by British artists, comprising of painting and sculpture spanning the 1950’s, 1960’s, and 1970’s, featuring renowned artists including Elisabeth Frink, F.E McWilliams, George Kennethson and Patrick Heron.
The collection came to the Peterborough Museum and Gallery through the generous bequest of Richard Warwick in his will in 1990. The collection is a personal selection of artworks bought together by Thomas Ealand (1916 – 1979) and Richard Warwick (1916-1989) who brought the works not for monetary value, but because they liked them. They lived in Oundle, Peterborough, in their cottage home Cherry Orchard yard where the works of this collection adorned their house and garden. The artists’ whose works they collected became their close personal friends and spent holidays with them at their homes in Cherry Orchard Yard, Oundle and Massalubrense, Italy. In conjunction with this exhibition there are two talks taking place in the gallery: