Thursday 06 May 2010
Skelton Workshops: A Treasure Awaits You Beneath The Stunning South Downs
Nestled in the South Downs, not so very far from Ditchling and thus Brighton, sits a truly wonderful gem of a place.
Masquerading as an Open House when in fact it is aliving breathing thing , a great higgledy-piggledy chunk of active Bloomsbury-meets-the-modern-world artistic endeavour, it is a living breathing thing.
And there are sculptures everywhere
This is no museum, like the 104 workshops in northern Paris that calls it itself Anti-musee this is place where work is primarily created and not just lovingly kept for prosperity
The former workshop of John Skelton, nephew of Eric Gill, a great carver of stone and wood and one of the few to really bridge the gap between modern and traditional sculpture, is known, fittingly, as the Skelton workshops.
Check him out @ www.johnskelton.org.uk
As one would expect there are many high quality examples of this man's work, both in the workshops and outside in two sculpture gardens. One of these gardens is hidden behind a secret gate just down the lane, kids will love this!
But this is no Charleston, no ladies in hacking jackets fussing around, no stuffy tours and no sense of time stopped, and somehow irretrievably lost.
Here there are carvers working day in and day out, students, sculptors in residence, many masters of the craft dropping in to lend a hand, and above all a sense of the active process of creation.
As such this Open House functions on several levels.
Firstly it is a great place to get tea and cake, John Skelton's widow Myrtle, is usually on hand with some of her awesome home made fayre that need to be eaten to be believed. She is also a gifted silversmith with work already in the Ditchling museum.
Secondly there are the sculpture gardens mentioned above.
Thirdly the workshops have there own resident pottery at the rear of the building and work from there will be on show.
Also there is the fine silver work of Myrtle Skelton.
In addition, high quality work from professional resident sculptors Paulien Gluckman, Jo Sweeting and Helen Mary Skelton will be on display and can be bought.
Plus there will be work from the student carvers, some of which will be for sale, all of which is of a very high standard in my view.
A wise move for those who like to get ahead of the game would be to look out for the work of Judith Pearson, including two relief pieces.
Pearson's work show both a deftness of touch and a quiet but richly evolving imaginative process that marks her work out for a special note at this time.
And if all of this creative spirit starts to enter your bones the Workshops are offering you a chance to have a go yourself.
For £10 you get two hours group tuition from one the resident sculptors. You will need to buy the stone on top of that, but it is a great chance to try your hand and to be the next John Skelton, Eric Gill or whatever.
Helen Mary, John's daughter tells me that many of her current students start with a 'taster session' and that no previous artistic experience is expected or required.
All money taken is ploughed back into the workshops.
If you're feeling lazy though, just relax in the beautiful courtyard, listen to the sound of the doves and the gentle tap of wood on metal, admire the work around you and sip your tea while you sink your teeth into the best slice of cake you will eat in a long time.
Skelton Workshops are open at weekends throughout the festival free of charge for visitors.
For further details contact Helen Mary Skelton on 01273 890491 or check the Open House Brochure under the Ditchling Trail.
by: Howard Young (Arts Editor)
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Bloomsbury-Meets-The-Modern-World
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