Ditchling Museum of Art & Craft

Ditchling Museum of Art & Craft

The Ditchling Museum of Art & Craft is a museum of social history, arts and crafts in the Ditchling area. Ditchling has a long history as a popular centre for arts, with many successful artists settling in the area. The museum has permanent exhibitions showcasing the work of many artists who lived and worked in Ditchling.

Among artists represented in the permanent collections are Eric Gill, Hilary Pepler, and Desmond Chute. The social history collections display photographs, documents, and memorabilia of Ditchling and the area.

The museum has also published a short booklet outlining a self-guided walk that visitors can take around the town, taking in many of the historic buildings and sites associated with local artists.

We were extremely impressed with the museum, though we knew very little about the Ditchling artists before we came here. The fascinating history of the artists and the way the museum showcases both the artwork and explains the process behind some of the printed art was wonderful.

It was really intriguing to see the printing presses used by St Dominic's Press, which printed many of the works by the artists on display.

It was also good to see how the museum made use of a traditional farm building for its visitor centre, shop, and cafe (very good cakes), while the artwork was displayed in a more modern building attached to the barn.

It was an excellent visitor experience, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the museum. Do take time to explore the village of Ditchling; there are dozens of interesting historic buildings to see just a few minutes walk from the museum.