I hadn’t been inside Charleston House since 2017 but took advantage of a friend being a member and went with her. There’s been some changes since my last visit, a new exhibition space, and a new cafe. Where the cafe used to be is now the entrance to the house, and the new cafe has moved into a barn, a much bigger space. We were there on a day they were short-staffed, so bigger wasn’t necessarily better, but the food was good.

Window looking out over the walled garden at Charleston

It was a glorious sunny day and the light coming through the windows was wonderful.

Window seat at Charleston with a shell and small sculpture on the sill, lovely light

I wouldn’t have minded taking a seat there myself with a book, I do love a window seat.

The Weaver by Vanessa Bell, a painting of a woman working at a table loom

The new exhibition inside the house is Growing up at Charleston and I believe this painting of Angelica with a table loom, The Weaver by Vanessa Bell, is part of that. I was taken with it because of the loom and weaving connection and my own history of using a rigid heddle loom in the past. I’ve written plenty here over the years about what I wove on it, though I sold the loom last year after it had languished under the bed for a few years.

Painted decoration on a window shutter at Charleston, white flowers on a lilac ground

Painted wall decoration at Charleston, a dark ground with pale diamonds and chevrons

Every surface is decorated in one way or another. I could have taken photos of tables, fireplaces, wardrobes, doors, but instead I chose a window decoration and a wall.

Landscape in Provence, France by Roger Eliot Fry, green hillside with umbrella pines

I really liked this painting, Landscape in Provence, France by Roger Eliot Fry. I liked it for the range of greens in use, from a yellowy-green to a dark bluey-green.

Charleston remains an inspiring place to visit. Just spending a moment thinking about the art created by those that passed through the doors is a bit mind-boggling, as is trying to keep track of the connections of who was there, when.