The West End House Gallery is located in the premises that were built in the early 1800's as the grocer's and draper's shop in Smarden.
The building commenced its time as a gallery in June 2003 when the artist Joel Arnstein, assisted by his wife Laura Hawken,
participated in the annual South-East Open Studios - a wonderful two-week period when over 250 artists and
crafts people in Kent and Sussex open their work studios to the public to view and discuss the artists work and techniques.
Joel's studio adjoins the West End House Gallery, and it is usually possible for visitors to exhibitions, at any time of the year, to see his current work and work in progress.
Artists
Smarden and the surrounding area have attracted many talented professional artists.A majority of these participate in the South East Open Studio scheme, so you can visit their studios in June each year. You can collect a free brochure, which briefly describes their work and studio location when you visit West End House Gallery in June.
Artists working in Smarden itself include:
- Rib Bloomfield (abstracts, acrylics)
- Vikky Furse (portrait and landscape painter)
- Chris Furse (wild bird watercolours)
- Suzy Coombe (watercolours)
- Liza Townsend (glassware and stained glass)
- Gill Withers (prints)
- Jenny Mowatt (ceramics)
- Marilyn Ferris (ceramic sculpture)
- Joel Arnstein (oil painting, prints, sculpture)