Charleston

Charleston offers a glimpse into the fascinating (and occasionally scandalous) history of the Bloomsbury Group of artists and writers. Charleston was the country meeting place of the Bloomsbury Group. The interiors were decorated by artists Duncan Grant and Vanessa Bell with murals, painted furniture, ceramics, and textiles, making the whole house a unique statement of their artistic beliefs.

Charleston holds a vast collection of art and historical materials on the Bloomsbury Group and their times. Among the art on display are textiles, ceramics, sculpture, furniture, paintings, photos, and a wide variety of smaller artistic experiments.

Outside the house is a walled garden designed by Roger Fry and created by Bell and Grant. Together they transformed a jumbled collection of hen runs and vegetable allotments into a painter's garden, with a Mediterranean style mixed with traditional English cottage garden ambience.

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Gravel paths lead through plants chosen for their vibrant colour, augmented by carefully selected pieces of sculpture that include life-sized works by Quentin Bell.

The cottage garden is linked to a summer garden made for painting and relaxing.

Charleston is run by a charity formed in 1980 to restore and preserve the house as a memorial to the influence on the arts of the Bloomsbury Group.

The house and its collection of art have been open to the public since 1987. There is a VERY busy schedule of talks, walks, educational visits, short and long art courses, workshops, and family events.