Words from the Shore – The Power of an Art Date

If you’ve read the Artist Way you’ll be familiar with the idea of art dates. If you haven’t think of it as regularly spending time immersing yourself in art. They can be so inspiring and lead your creative thought in unexpected directions.

I’ve wanted to visit Kettle's Yard  for a long time but Cambridge is quite a way from my home in Devon, so I’ve had to bide my time. I'm not quite sure when I first read about Kettle’s yard, but think it might have been whilst discovering Alfred Wallace’s work years ago in St Ives.

Jim Ede's bedroom at Kettles Yard

Have you ever walked into a place and felt so at home it is almost as if you have stepped back in toyour own memory? Two weeks ago, I visited Kettles Yard in Cambridge and I had that feeling from the moment  I rang the bell pull and walked through the doorway into the Ede's tranquil space. Luckily, there was only one other visitor in my group, so I was able to quietly wander through the downstairs rooms and gently sense the presence of those who had gone before.

Everywhere you look there is an original by a well-known artist. Everything remains just as it was when the Ede’s moved out in the 70s. It is in the covenant that nothing should be changed except a fresh lemon on a dish, which is changed weekly, and flowers which fill studio pottery jugs.

Lemon on a dish

Kettle’s yard , now owned by the University of Cambridge, is ‘a beautiful house with a remarkable collection of modern art’. It’s founders Jim and Helen Ede transformed some near derelict cottages into ‘a living place where works of art could be enjoyed.’

They lived in the house from 1957 to 1973 and strongly believed in art’s ability to transform lives. Jim had been a curator for Tate Britain during the 1920s and 1930s and during that time became friends with many contemporary artists.

Found objects on a chest of drawers

He collected and was given work by artists such as  Ben and Winifred Nicholson, Henry Moore, Joan Miro and David Jones.  It is originals from these artists that hang on every wall in the house. There is a stunning wall full of Alfred Wallace’s marine paintings which sit alongside  Barbara Hepworth sculptures.

Everywhere you look there is stunning art  and sitting alongside  them are so many found treasures- shells, pebbles, grasses and dried flowers. A glassed area, almost a conservatory in the sky, is full of plants growing towards the light.

Chair at Kettle's Yard

 Upstairs, in the main living room and Helen’s bedroom, there are many original chairs that you can sit and relax on. Whilst I was there, art students sat sketching and it was fascinating to listen to tutors giving one to one feedback  using Kettles Yard as a true teaching space and reference point.

The layers of art were evident and I had the sense that Jim and Helen would have approved of this transfer of knowledge. In their time, they offered an open house policy and invited students in to look at and talk about art whilst sitting around the dining table eating toast and marmalade. They were even allowed to borrow originals to furnish their student digs.

Dining table at Kettle's Yard

Something that I didn't expect was that wandering through Kettle’s Yard was like walking through my childhood home, in so many ways.

I was brought up in an old cottage on a farm in Cornwall. No walls were straight, nothing matched and yet everything fitted together perfectly. My mum had a unique style which in some ways mirrored that of the Ede’s in an uncanny way. I know that my mum would not have had the opportunity to visit Kettle’s Yard and it’s unlikely that she saw any pictures of it and yet the interior design choices were so similar. maybe it was simply the style of the time, but I think not. Our bathroom was filled with shells, pebbles and dried grasses and had paintings on the wall. None of my friend’s bathrooms looked anything  like that. Throughout the house we had tapestries hanging on the walls, original paintings and studio pottery everywhere. There was never much money in our house, so these art works came as gifts or were bought at jumble sales and auctions.

Library at Kettle's Yard

We had a library in an inglenook fireplace -books were everywhere. Interestingly enough, a few years ago my childhood home was featured on ‘Escape to the Country’ and at some point after we had moved out the inglenook fireplace had been filled in and plastered over. It is a secret waiting to delight a new owner as one day no doubt it will be re-discovered.  There is a library at Kettle’s Yard too, albeit a far bigger one, and for a moment I sat and was taken back in time to that inglenook fireplace as I spotted familiar titles.

I spent a wonderful afternoon with my  childhood memories and that evening followed an interesting exchange with my siblings remembering all the style features that my Mum had. My siblings hadn’t been to or known about Kettles Yard and yet the lists they came up with could have been lists to describe the exact design features of it. The one difference being that my mum was a maximalist! Our paintings definitely didn’t often have space to breath.

If you are near Cambridge it is well worth a visit and if you have an art pass you can get in for half price. Entry is timed and a group begins their self-guided tour every 15 minutes.

This art date most definitely didn’t disappoint.

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