Historic Artists' Haven Set to Bloom Again for Public Visits Next Summer

Benton End, a historic Tudor manor located in Hadleigh, Suffolk, is set to reopen to the public after years of being privately owned. This house, built with red bricks and wooden beams, was once the home of two well-known artists, Sir Cedric Morris and Arthur Lett-Haines. Together, they established the East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing, which became a hub for creativity and learning. The house is surrounded by beautiful gardens, which Morris, an avid gardener, helped design and care for.

Recently, the Garden Museum in London received a significant grant of over two hundred ninety-four thousand pounds from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. This funding will be used to restore Benton End House and its gardens, starting with important surveys and investigations of the building’s roof and structure. Charles Spicer, chair of the Benton End Board and a trustee of the Garden Museum, expressed his excitement about the grant, saying it would help make the reopening possible by next summer.

The story of Benton End is closely tied to the lives of Morris and Lett-Haines. They first opened their art school in Dedham, Essex, in 1937, but a fire forced them to move to Benton End in 1939. The school attracted many talented students, including Lucian Freud, Maggi Hambling, and Joan Warburton. Morris was especially famous for his flower paintings, which often featured vibrant colors and detailed backgrounds. In 2021, the house was gifted to the Garden Museum by Bridget and Rob Pinchbeck, who wanted to see it revived as a place for art, learning, and horticulture. Without the recent grant, the house might have been sold and returned to private ownership. Now, thanks to the support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Benton End is on track to become a center for art, gardening, food, and education in Suffolk once again.