Art & Culture On Display in Falmouth
Art & Culture On Display in Falmouth
Falmouth not only has beautiful beaches and striking scenery; it also has a thriving art scene inspired by the natural environment and creative lifestyle down here in the South West. Alongside our established permanent museums, the town is also full of galleries, pop-ups and creative festivals – not to mention the celebrated arts university where the next wave of artistic talent come to hone their craft!
We’ve put together a short guide to the creative art scene in Falmouth and beyond, adding some cultural balance to your beach holiday…
Kurt Jackson at the National Maritime Museum
Internationally renowned contemporary artist Kurt Jackson has an exhibition showing at the Maritime Museum in central Falmouth until 3rd November 2024, in celebration of 200 years of the RNLI.
His collection of Cornish seascape paintings “vary in scale from postcard sized pieces up to massive canvasses that capture the charity’s iconic blue and orange lifeboats.” The artworks show the reality of Cornish life-saving with the RNLI, and feature well-known beaches like Sennen, Gwithian, Porthtowan and Trebarwith.
As well as seeing Kurt Jackson’s wonderful work, you can also browse the permanent galleries at the museum, and dive into the current ‘Pirates’ exhibition which is running until January 2025. Both include an impressive range of art pieces and cultural artefacts which celebrate people’s connection to the coast, and shine light on lives that are deeply intertwined with the sea.
The NMMC is open daily 10am – 5pm and operates on a ‘pay once, get in all year’ scheme:
Adults £18.00, Children (Under 18s) £9.00, Children (Under 5s) Free
Falmouth Art Gallery
At the opposite end of the town is Falmouth Art Gallery – a council run space which offers free entry all year round (Mon-Sat). The traditional building houses over 2,700 artworks including Pre-Raphaelite and British Impressionist paintings, contemporary prints, automata, photography, and a children’s illustration archive. This year, they have also launched a new digital guide with audio descriptions and videos to guide you around the space.
On a smaller scale than the Maritime Museum, this is probably a shorter visit for most, but a perfect chance to pop in and learn a little more about the cultural history of the town and surrounding area.
The Poly
‘The Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society’ is right in the middle of Falmouth and has a small gallery space and local makers’ shop, as well as a theatre space which hosts talks, film screenings and theatre performances throughout the year. A wonderful platform to discover local artists, with upcoming exhibition titles including:
To The Shoreline: A Mixed Media Journey
Quartet: The Joy of Art
Ben Baker: Wire Drawing
The Poly Members’ Summer Exhibition 2024
Each show is usually on for less than a week, so you may even fit two exhibitions into your visit! View the full programme of events and workshops here, or just pop by and browse. We recommend the upstairs cafe too!
Morgan’s Art Gallery
The beautifully renovated Morgan’s gallery space and artist studios also lie in the heart of Falmouth’s main street. A contemporary working gallery, there is less of a guided ‘museum experience’ here, but you’ll find a wide range of creative crafts and fine art, showcasing young and emerging talent alongside well established artists. Each show is curated by the family and they have just launched ‘Show No.4’ this August…
FORM Art Festival
Fri 20th to Sun 22nd Sept 2024 is the third annual FORM Art Festival in Falmouth with talks, workshops and exhibitions at venues across the town, including a 3-day art fair at Princess Pavilions. Over 90 artists and craftspeople will be there, representing a range of disciplines including art, illustration, printmaking, ceramics, sculpture, woodwork and jewellery.
It’s going to be a wonderful opportunity to see the people behind the artwork and have a chat with them about their creative processes and inspiration. If you’re visiting over this particular weekend in September, we definitely recommend going along. (The festival is free to attend).
Further Afield…
Of course Cornwall is also famous for the Tate St Ives and Barbara Hepworth Museum, which are around an hour’s drive from most of our cottages. Guests also love the Tremenheere Sculpture Garden and The Exchange in Penzance, amongst many others!
We’d love to hear your favourite art and culture recommendations as this list is by no means exhaustive! It’s lovely to hear which places our guests have most enjoyed, and our emails are always open so do contact us!
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