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13/05/2026

Inside ‘Inventing Landscape’ 🌿

Today, we’re in the heart of ‘Gainsborough, Turner & Constable’s: Inventing Landscape’, to look at a centrepiece of the collection, and the exhibition: ‘Peasants Going to Market’ 🐴

This drawing is part of an innovative series of rural migration scenes from the early 1770s, in which the figures are the focus of the landscapes. Around the same time, Gainsborough was also experimenting with drawing ✍️

Here, like a Renaissance chiaroscuro drawing or woodcut, he has used tonal contrasts to create a striking, depth-filled image. The composition and dramatic use of light appear to derive from Rembrandt’s etching ‘The Flight into Egypt’ (1651).

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🖼️ — Thomas Gainsborough (1727–88), ‘Peasants Going to Market’, c. 1770–74, Chalk with wash and bodycolour on paper, Gainsborough’s House, Collection Number: 1993.001

07/05/2026

From Sudbury to Snowdonia 🏔️

Today, we’re joining David Dawson inside ‘Land, Sky, Light’, to discuss his eye-catching oil on canvas: ‘The Flood’.

Using a photograph for reference, Dawson depicts a beautiful sunset over the Porthmadog Estuary, an area close to home and heart 💫

From the tidal nature of the estuary, to a fleeting shared moment with a buzzard, ‘The Flood’ represents how the smallest interaction with nature can become impossible to forget, and change the nature of the work itself 🪶

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🖼️ — David Dawson (b. 1960) ‘The Flood’, Oil on canvas, 2026, © courtesy the artist.

04/05/2026

A portal into the past and future 🔮

Today, we step into the Historic House, and inside Kate Giles’ exhibition: ‘Remember Tomorrow’, responding in large part to Constable’s ‘The Leaping Horse’ 🐎

Giles works from the familiar landscape of West Acre, exploring distance through volume, changes in scale, and the activity of paint in her brushwork 🖌️

Her work, much like the exhibition’s title, is inspired by the past, but directly influenced by the present, to look forward into the future.

Kate Giles’ ‘Remember Tomorrow’, is the twin exhibition to the upcoming ‘Solid Air’ exhibition, from May 30 — June 28, at the 2026 Aldeburgh Exhibition Festival.

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Images ©️ Jackie Mellor — 2026.

03/05/2026

Bank Holiday Bonus! 🎁

A year on from the launch of Katherine Jones RA’s incredible exhibition: ‘Fine Ladies and Gentle Men’ in our Historic House, we are delighted to share her ‘In Conversation’ with Jo Baring, completely free on our YouTube channel 🎞️

— our second-ever Artist in Residence sat down with — Director of The Ingram Collection of Modern British & Contemporary Art, to explore ideas, inspirations and the process behind Katherine’s remarkable paintings and prints.

Enjoy some insightful, Bank Holiday viewing and watch the full ‘In Conversation’ here ➡️ https://youtu.be/WzUtFwNTYY0

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Photos © Jackie Mellor, — 2025.

30/04/2026

The garden is glorious right now! 🪏

Thanks to the generous support of The Finnis Scott Foundation, our volunteers have been busy pruning, planting and breathing new life into the space, armed with brand new tools and plenty of enthusiasm 🌷

Everything is being brought to its very best ahead of summer, and we cannot wait to welcome you in 🪴
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16/04/2026

“Look in my eyes, what do you see…”

Today, we’re highlighting two additions to the Cedric Morris Room this changeover period 📦

Cordelia “Delia” Dobson (1888–1990), lived for the majority of her life in Newlyn, where Morris and Lett briefly lived in 1919. Morris named the iris “Benton Cordelia”, after her. It won the British Iris Society’s silver medal at Chelsea in 1935 🌷

Ruza Wenclawska (1889–1934), was a Polish-American suffragist, who was also involved in the labour rights movement. She was jailed in 1917 during the Silent Sentinels protests in Washington, then became an actress, touring in Europe in the twenties 🎬

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1. 🖼️ — Cedric Morris (1889–1982), ‘Cordelia “Delia” Dobson, née Tregurtha (1888–1990)’, Oil on canvas, c. 1922.

2. 🖼️ — Cedric Morris (1889–1982), ‘Ruza Wenclawska
(1889-1934)’, Oil on canvas c. 1920-25.

08/04/2026

Spotlight 🔦

Today we’re highlighting one of the newer additions to our permanent collection! ‘A Cottage on the Edge of a Cornfield’, by John Constable, is inspired by one of Constable’s earliest mentors, John Thomas Smith.

Constable first met Smith in 1796 whilst staying with his aunt and uncle in Edmonton, north London. Smith was preparing a series of prints of ‘picturesque’ cottages, based on real cottages on the outskirts of London and influenced by Gainsborough 🏡

This drawing was sent by Constable to Smith for consideration in his publication! 📖

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🖼️: John Constable (1776–1837), ‘A Cottage on the Edge of a Cornfield’, c. 1796-98, Pen and grey wash on paper.

02/04/2026

Designing an exhibition ⚜️

While the Galleries lay bare, the museum is bustling behind the scenes during our changeover period. Design plays a crucial role in getting new exhibitions up and running 🏃‍♂️

Join Lex, Marketing and Design Officer, as she describes her design workflow during this fast-paced period. From wall signs, to graphics, to merchandise, Lex has a hand in every step of the exhibition process 🎨

For more insights into design, head over to Gainsborough’s House’s YouTube Channel to watch the full video! 🎥 https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCYduQoB8kBHC53Nk-B3KWxg

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01/04/2026

Calling all Members! 🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒

We have refreshed our Membership programme just in time for the new exhibition cycle!

All of your favourite perks and features are still available to Members, including free entry, exhibition previews, as well as free Breakfast Tours and priority event booking for Members Pluses ➕

We are also introducing our Under 25 Membership (student 18–25) which can be redeemed FREE at reception! 🎓

Head over to our website to find out more and get involved! https://gainsborough.org/get-involved/membership/ ↩️

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26/03/2026

Our upcoming exhibitions commencing 25 April 2026 include:

➡️ Gainsborough, Turner & Constable: Inventing Landscape 🐄🌲🌳
2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of the Suffolk-born artist John Constable (1776–1837). To celebrate, our exhibition explores the emergence of the tradition of landscape painting in Britain through three of its greatest exponents.

➡️ Land, Sky, Light: New Landscapes by David Dawson 🌄
This exhibition features fifteen of Dawson’s (b. 1960) recent large-scale paintings of his native countryside in Montgomeryshire, Wales, painted en plein air. During each season of the year, the artist paints outdoors, then continues to work on them in his London studio before bringing them back to be completed in the Welsh countryside, taking several years for each one.

➡️ Kate Giles: Remember Tomorrow 💭
Suffolk-born and Norfolk residing artist Kate Giles (b. 1962) creates expressive work rooted in her native landscape, specifically drawing on the legacy of John Constable. This exhibition primarily showcases new paintings and drawings, several of which explicitly refer to Constable’s six-footer of the Suffolk landscape, The Leaping Horse, which will be on display as part of the main exhibition during this season.

We can’t wait for you to experience these specials exhibitions! See our website for more information about the exhibition change-over period and how this might affect your visit.

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Images:
1. John Constable (1776–1837). The Leaping Horse, 1825. Oil on canvas, 142 x 187.3 cm (Royal Academy of Arts, London). © Photo: Royal Academy of Arts, London. Photographer: Prudence Cuming Associates Limited
2. David Dawson (b. 1960). Perfect light, 2025. Oil on canvas.
3. Kate Giles (b. 1962). Leap (Noonday), 2026. Oil on linen.

Address

46-47 Gainsborough Street, Sudbury
Suffolk
CO102EU

Opening Hours

Monday	10am - 4:30pm
Tuesday	10am - 4:30pm
Wednesday	10am - 4:30pm
Thursday	10am - 4:30pm
Friday	10am - 4:30pm
Saturday	10am - 4:30pm
Sunday	10am - 4:30pm

Telephone

+441787372958

Website

http://gainsboroughshouse.bio.link/

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