THE ARTS
Surrounded by sparkling turquiose seas and glittering granite sand. West Cornwall's legendary quality of light has been a draw for artists for many centuries.
In the 1880s, the small fishing village of Newlyn became the centre of Britain's leading art movement of the day, the 'Newlyn School'. Artists such as Stanhope Forbes and Walter Langley recorded the picturesque but arduous lives of the local fishing and farming communities. Their work, can be found at Penlee House Gallery & Museum in Penzance.
Newlyn's pioneering artistic spirit is perpetuated in Newlyn Art Gallery and The Exchange in Penzance. These two galleries boast the largest exhibition space this side of Bristol.
Some seven miles away from Newlyn, the village of St Ives housed another flourishing artists' colony. In the 1930s and 40s this became the home of another world famous art movement - the St Ives Modernist group.
Ben Nicholson, Christopher Wood, Alfred Wallis, Barbara Hepworth, Naum Gabo and the potter Bernard Leach were some of the first artists to set up in the town. The art of this group is frequently exhibited at Tate St Ives, the internationally-known gallery overlooking Porthmeor beach, which presents exhibitions of modern and contemporary art.
Artists of all kinds still find this part of Cornwall a conducive environment and the area is rich with private galleries showing and selling work. St Just is also home to many fine galleries.