Wills Lane Gallery - St Ives

(Wills Lane Gallery - and passer-by!)

Wills Lane Gallery is an institution in St Ives - when run by Henry Gilbert (Gilly) it was gloriously ramshackle. In it's heyday occassional Nicholsons, Scotts or Hiltons were displayed alongside more modern artist's work, usually just lent against walls rather than hung on them. Laterly the building had fallen on harder times with damp and leaks threatening the art and the then octogenarian Gilly opening irregularly.

The new curator - Petronilla Silver, who is a former Director of the Contemporary Art Society - has transformed the space into a light and modern gallery for the new century. She's spent some time seeing to the fabric of the gallery, repairing leaking roofs and has opened up the upstairs to give a second large light gallery.


The gallery is very different the old Wills Lane but is now a bigger and better space with a refreshed selection of top notch artists and Petronilla herself is a knowledgeable and enthusiastic curator. Her policy is to show nationally known, and up and coming fine and applied artists. Exhibitions change regularly and it is obvious that the gallery now has a renewed purpose and direction bringing the best contemporary and thoughtful artists to the end of England.

When we were there there was an exhibition of prints by Ana Maria Pacheco,

amazing volcanic ceramics by Aneta Regel Deleu...

Black and White Photographs by Ander Gunn...

handwritten text drawings by Irene Lees and textiles by Ismini Samanidou...

Thrown porcelain pots by Mick Arnold....

and paintings by Richard Cook... (amongst other artists and makers)