Charleston House and Gardens, Lewes

Designed as living painting and filled with sculpture, Charleston's garden continues to evolve and inspire.
Charleston, near Lewes and nestled in the Sussex South Downs, was the home of the Bloomsbury group that included Vanessa Bell, Duncan Grant, John Maynard Keynes, Virginia Woolf and EM Forster.

When artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant arrived at Charleston in 1916, the garden was filled with fruit trees and vegetables. It was redesigned in 1918 by the art critic Roger Fry, a close friend, who created the rectangular lawn, gravel paths and flowerbeds, which Bell and Grant filled with the flowers they loved to paint.
Its walled garden is quintessentially a painters' garden, mixing Mediterranean influences with cottage garden planting. Part of the garden's sense of luxuriance and surprise comes from the variety of sculpture it contains. Classical forms sit side by side with life size works by Quentin Bell, mosaic pavements and tile-edged pools.
A place for excitement and discovery as well as quiet contemplation, Charleston's beautiful walled garden is free to visit Wednesday–Sunday/Bank Holiday Mondays.
Book tickets to visit the House here.

Charleston House and Gardens Opening Times

 Tearoom, shop, 2 wheelchairs available.

We hold events and workshops throughout the year, including free art activities for children (first Sunday of every month) – please check our website for details.