Kettles Yard, Cambridge

Old sign on Kettles Yard wall

Kettles Yard House and Gallery is a unique art experience located at the corner of Castle Street and Northampton Street. The collection is composed of paintings, glass, furniture, ceramics and ordinary objects in an intimate "homelike" atmosphere.

Most of the art comes from the first half of the 20th century and includes sculpture by Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth, and paintings by Winifred Nicholson, Alfred Wallis, and Christopher Wood.

Kettles Yard is the gift to Cambridge University of Jim Edes, former assistant curator of the Tate Gallery in London. Edes wanted to create a place where visitors would 'find a home and a welcome, a refuge of peace and order, of the visual arts and of music.'

In this respect the House differs from an ordinary art gallery, where displays of artworks are arranged in isolation; here the house and art are sympathetically integrated.

The Gallery space hosts regular musical performances, including chamber music, student lunchtime recitals, and modern jazz. Temporary exhibitions reflect 20th-century retrospective art and contemporary artwork from around the world. As well, an annual Open Exhibition showcases East England artists.

Free lunchtime lectures are also a regular feature at Kettles Yard.