Smallest gallery in Nottinghamshire opens in Thoresby

The AIR-ing Cupboard At Thoresby Park is a brand new gallery showing the work of Thoresby’s Artists In Residence and selected guests, they are what’s being called the ‘Fresh Air’. It measures just under 10 square metres but every centimeter of it is bursting with talent.

The gallery’s founder is one of Thoresby’s resident artists, Dawn Idalia.

She said: “We are so excited to be presenting artists of such a high calibre in our first exhibition.

Susan Isaac is a multi-award winning painter and sculptor who also won the Thoresby Open in 2017.

Susan is exhibiting her work nationally and is showing wonderful paintings of our much loved architectural treasures from Southwell Minster to Thoresby Hall.

We’ve also bagged Alison Read, I’ve been a fan of her work for over 20 years and I’m not surprised to see that she’s now selling all over the country and in venues such as Fortnum and Masons.”

The gallery is housed above the café at Thoresby Park in one of the rooms that were used to house soldiers in the Second World War and the style of it’s branding is a nod to that history.

The Park is now owned by a Charity called The Stonebridge Trust, which was set up in part to support the arts and to house and exhibit the collection of Marie-Louise Pierrepont which can be seen in the Courtyard Gallery.

“We are very grateful to the Stonebridge trust for supporting the creation of this new space which has been set up with Thoresby’s visitors firmly in mind. We’ve selected a wide range of work that we hope will really appeal and give many years of joy”.

The Airing Cupboard opened on the1st June, which coincided with the first of two Open Studio Weekends (as part of Open Studios Notts).

The whole of June is also be Made at Thoresby Month which is celebrating the range of products made on the estate and offering Workshop Wednesdays so that visitors can see and experience the making for themselves.

Plus there are the outstanding creative talents always present in the courtyard such as David Fowkes Jewellery, Ingrid Pears Hot Glass, Elle Bee interiors to name a few and a new wood workshop opening soon.

Thoresby is really establishing itself as a destination for lovers of high quality arts and crafts and will soon be offering a ‘makers map’ to all visitors to help them find the creativity spread throughout the historic courtyard buildings.

For the Made at Thoresby programme of events and workshops go to www.whatsonatthoresby.co.uk