Dartington: Inspiration for 20th Century Artists

On display until May 2012
Monday – Friday 10am – 4pm
Garden Room Corridor , Space

Dartington has always been a place of inspiration for artists from different disciplines and continues to be today. This small exhibition gives a flavour of some of the artists working here during the early 20th century, a highpoint in Dartington’s creativity.

When Leonard and Dorothy Elmhirst bought Dartington Hall in 1925 they wanted it to become a model of rural regeneration and a place of experiment, education and the arts were to be an important part of their plans. They helped artists by offering them somewhere to work, and often to live, as well as buying their work and nurturing their talents. Dorothy funded a trip to Japan in 1934-5 for potter Bernard Leach and painter Mark Tobey, both of whom worked and lived at Dartington. Japan was for Leach his spiritual home and this would be for both artists an opportunity for creative inspiration. The Elmhirsts’ support and patronage did much to see artists associated with Dartington become important and, in some cases, world-renowned.

Featuring the work of:

• Bernard Leach (1887-1979)
• Marianne de Trey (1913 – )
• Elisabeth (1904-2000) and Cecil Collins (1908-1989)
• Hein Heckroth (1901-1970)
• Siguard Leeder (1902-1981)