Higher Spargo Stories

Why does contemporary art matter in Cornwall?

At first glance, Cornwall might seem an unlikely place to ask that question. We are far from London’s institutions and markets; our cultural life unfolds across fields, fishing towns, old industrial landscapes, converted chapels, studios, village halls, gardens and coastlines. And yet, perhaps precisely because of this, Cornwall has become one of the most interesting places in the UK to think about what contemporary art can be.

On 2 July we’re delighted to welcome Teresa Gleadowe to Higher Spargo School of Art for a conversation exploring the role contemporary art plays in Cornwall today — and how this place has quietly become a site of national and international significance for artists, curators and cultural institutions.

Teresa has been one of the key figures shaping this story. Founder of CAST in Helston and Director of Groundwork — the ambitious programme developed with Tate St Ives, Newlyn Art Gallery & The Exchange and Kestle Barton — she has spent years building spaces for encounter: between artists and audiences, contemporary practice and local histories, Cornwall and the wider world.

Groundwork was never simply about bringing “big names” to Cornwall. It asked a deeper question: what happens when contemporary art grows out of place — its histories, communities, ecologies and ways of seeing? Exhibitions unfolded across beaches, chapels, museums and unexpected sites. Artists worked with scientists, historians and local communities. Conversations mattered as much as exhibitions.

That legacy can still be felt across Cornwall today.

You see it in institutions that continue to evolve and ask difficult questions. At Tate St Ives, exhibitions increasingly position Cornwall not as a peripheral landscape but as a place from which to think about contemporary life. At Newlyn Art Gallery and The Exchange, programmes regularly explore environment, identity and social change. CAST has become one of the county’s most thoughtful spaces for dialogue and experimentation. And beyond the gallery walls, places like Krowji, The Poly, Eden and countless artist-led initiatives continue to ask what culture can contribute to public life.

At Higher Spargo, this question feels increasingly important to us too.

What should art schools become now? What kinds of spaces encourage serious making and meaningful conversation? How do we support artists while remaining connected to place, food, landscape and everyday life?

This evening won’t offer a single answer. Instead, we hope it opens a conversation about what kind of cultural ecology Cornwall wants for the future — and the role artists, audiences and institutions might play within it.

Join us for what promises to be an inspiring and provocative evening.

2 July | Higher Spargo School of Art
More details here…..

As we take delight in the occasional few hours of sunshine during this particularly wet winter — sitting in the warmth, listening to birds beginning their preparations for spring — it feels like a good moment to reflect on all that has been achieved here at Higher Spargo over the past year.

This time last year the studio classroom was barely even on the drawing board. By August, however, the doors were open and we welcomed our first students for an inaugural course led by Tim Shaw RA. It was an exciting milestone, and one that set the tone for everything that has followed.

Looking ahead to 2026, we are delighted to be planning a far more ambitious programme. We will host twelve short courses, ranging from two to seven days in length, alongside a series of monthly evening events beginning after Easter. These will open with a screening of Tim Shaw’s extraordinary film Lifting the Curse. Later in the year we are honoured to welcome another Tim — Sir Tim Smit of the Eden Project — who will join us for a special event. A full listing of courses and events is available on our website.

November also marked an important moment for the farm itself, as we welcomed half a dozen North Devon (Ruby Red) cattle — the first livestock to return here in more than a decade. They have quickly become a constant source of pleasure: endlessly curious, surprisingly perceptive, gentle, and occasionally a little mischievous. Sitting in the winter sun watching them quietly munch hay offers a welcome pause in busy days and a reminder of the rhythms that shape life here.

Like many across this part of Cornwall, we also felt the impact of Storm Goretti. Several old and very large beech trees were lost in the Argal Valley along River Lane. It is always sad to see such magnificent trees fall, yet their loss also creates space for renewal. The valley holds remnants of Atlantic rainforest, and we hope to encourage native oak and the rich web of plant and animal life that depends on it to flourish in the years ahead.

With support from the Woodland Trust, survey work in the valley has already identified rare lichens and other indicator species of this remarkable habitat. We look forward to exploring this further at our June event with Merlin Hanbury-Tenison, where we will be learning more about Atlantic rainforest and the importance of protecting and restoring it.

As winter gradually gives way to spring, there is a strong sense of momentum here — in the studio, on the farm, and across the landscape. We look forward to welcoming many of you to Higher Spargo in the months ahead.