Watts Gallery

What’s on in April

Spring is here, and Watts Gallery is looking much brighter with all the flowers beginning to bloom.

Women of Influence: The Pattle Sisters enters its final weeks in the Historic Galleries. Don’t miss the chance to discover the lives of seven remarkable Anglo-Indian sisters and their impact on Victorian society before the exhibition closes on Monday 4 May.
Over in Watts Contemporary Gallery, there is still time to see the works of three wood engravers in Lines & Lineage, closing on Sunday 12 April. Opening on Thursday 16 April, Channel 4’s The Great Pottery Throwdown judge Rich Miller will be taking the stage in his first major solo exhibition, Fired Legacies.
Round up the whole family for an exciting Easter holiday at Watts Gallery, with plenty of free-with-admission activities to enjoy and creative workshops on select days. See website for more information.
Join us on Wednesday 29 April for a talk with author Sarah King, in the Old Kiln, 1.30pm to 2.30pm, as she discusses her latest book, A Reluctant Memsahib: At the Court of the Viceroy. The book explores the journey of a woman living in Imperial India, revealing the realities faced by British women and the expectations placed upon them. A copy of the book is included in the ticket price. See our website for more information.
To celebrate the final weeks of the Women of Influence exhibition, we invite our visitors to a special salon evening on Wednesday 29 April, in the Historic Galleries, 6pm to 8pm. Enjoy inspiring talks from the exhibition curators, followed by an exquisite performance by the Turner Quartet. Light refreshments will be available.

For more information and to book tickets, visit wattsgallery.org.uk/whats-on

Nestled in the beautiful Surrey Hills, Watts Gallery first opened its doors to the public in 1904. It is unique in the UK being the only purpose-built art gallery created for the display of works by a single artist, the great Victorian artist G.F. Watts (1817-1904). Over one hundred paintings and sculptures are on permanent display; spanning a period of 70 years, they include portraits, landscapes and major symbolic works.

Perched on a hillside, overlooking the Gallery sits Limnerslease, the Autumn and Winter home and studio of G.F. and Mary Watts, originally built in the Arts & Crafts style. Limnerslease recently underwent a major restoration project. Don’t miss the chance to join a guided tour and glimpse the start of this nationally important project.

To this day, the legacy of G.F. and Mary Watts lives on, with artists working onsite and a contemporary gallery selling artwork by local and national artists. Watts Gallery also runs an extensive events programme for families, adults and young people, offering the opportunity to improve your art skills, attend a lecture, or meet one of the artists in residence.

George Frederic Watts 1817 - 1904

The English symbolist painter and sculptor George Frederic Watts lived in Compton during the latter years of his life.

George Frederic Watts occupies a unique place in the history of British painting. Famous in his day as a painter and sculptor, he gained the nickname of ‘England’s Michelangelo’. His aim was to re-invent British history painting in a grand manner, making images that were both uplifting and thought provoking. He believed art should also be accessible to everyone, not just the rich, so he gave many of his pictures to public galleries, helping to found the Tate Gallery in 1897.

Watts was a serious individual, so it may therefore come as no surprise that his marriage to the teenage actress Ellen Terry, was short lived. In later life, he married Mary Fraser-Tytler (1886) who was 36 years his junior. Mary devoted the rest of her life to her husband, both during his life and after his death.

In 1891 Watts made Limnerslease his winter retreat and it remained so until his death in 1904. Mary Watts, the inspiration behind the move to Compton and the Chapel, continued to live there until she died in 1938.

Shortly before his death in 1904, G.F. Watts saw the opening of the first and main portion of 'Watts Picture Gallery'.

Cicely Robinson is Curator.

G.F. Watts - Lion & Tiger Fighting. 1830. Aged 13

Watts Chapel

Watts Gallery