Cornwall Calling: The Artists of Newlyn, Lamorna & St Ives | May 2024

The beauty of the countryside, the drama of the sea and the clarity of the light attracted a succession of artists to the Cornish fishing towns of Newlyn, Lamorna and St Ives in the late 19th and 20th centuries. 

The painters of the Newlyn School were led by Stanhope Forbes; they adhered to the principle of painting en plein air and found subject matter amongst the local fishermen and their families. In the 20th century, St Ives became a focus for leading avant-garde artists such as Ben Nicholson, Naum Gabo and Barbara Hepworth, as well as Patrick Heron, Roger Hilton and Peter Lanyon. 

Our tour will follow in the footsteps of the artists inspired by the Cornish land and seascapes from the 1800s to the present day. In Truro, a predominantly Georgian town, we will visit John Loughborough Pearson’s neo-Gothic cathedral and the Royal Cornwall Museum, home to a collection of Cornish paintings by artists from both the Newlyn School and the Lamorna Group.

Perched above the River Fal, leading to the sea, the neoclassical columned house at Trelissick offers spectacular maritime views amidst beautifully landscaped gardens and woodland. We will continue by boat to Falmouth Art Gallery, described as having “one of the leading art collections of Cornwall and the South West”, including works by Henry Scott Tuke. 

Reopened in 2017 after a £20 million transformation by Jamie Fobert Architects, Tate St Ives was the Art Fund’s Museum of the Year in 2018. The gallery hosts a rich collection of modern art in a dramatic seafront setting, including pottery and stoneware by Bernard Leach and marine paintings by local artist Alfred Wallis. A short walk away is Trewyn Studio, Barbara Hepworth’s home and studio from 1949 to 1975. The rooms feel as though she has only just left them and the small, tranquil garden provides the perfect setting for her sculptures.

Our tour also includes visits to Newlyn Art Gallery; the Penlee House Gallery and Museum in Penzance, where key works by Newlyn School artists reside; and the church at St Hilary with its series of unique paintings created by artists such as Dod and Ernest Procter and Roger Fry. We will spend an afternoon at the romantically named and justly famous Lost Gardens of Heligan.

We will stay throughout at the four-star Penventon Park Hotel in Redruth, a comfortable and uniquely decorated property which occupies an elegant Georgian mansion house set in private parkland.

This tour includes a boat trip from Trelissick to Falmouth. To access the boat, participants will walk for about 15 minutes down a path and along a jetty, with handrails throughout; at the other end, if the tide is low, participants will ascend around 20 steps without a handrail. The Tour Personnel will provide assistance to anyone who needs it, however care must be taken throughout and participants should feel confident getting on and off the boat.
 
This tour will be led by Sarah Burles, MA, who studied History of Art at Cambridge University before going on to a career in museum and gallery education. This included 12 years at the Fitzwilliam Museum as well as work in other Cambridge museums. Sarah has worked on the St Ives artists and their links to Kettle’s Yard, and has taught a short course on ‘The Art of Cornwall’. 

Included: accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, five breakfasts, five dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities & all taxes.

Not Included: travel insurance, double room for single use supplement £125.