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Visit Penlee House & Museum

Penlee House is a Gallery, Museum, Cafe and Shop. Situated within Penlee Park, a space to reflect and great for family visits.

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A space for exhibitions & events

Alongside our Exhibition programme we run a variety of community events and workshops. The Newlyn School and Social history galleries change often. Find out what’s on.

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A space to learn

Penlee House is committed to lifelong learning. We run workshops for all age groups and offer a school workshop programme.

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A space for all

Built in 1865, as the home of the Branwell family. Penlee House is home to many paintings by members of the Newlyn School. It is also home to the Penzance Natural History and Antiquarian Society collection.

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You can search and browse our collections online. We also have a section dedicated to the Newlyn School.

Garstin, Norman

The Irish artist Norman Garstin painted what has become one of Penlee House’s best-loved works, ‘The Rain it Raineth Every Day’. A leading figure of the Newlyn School, he was as famous for his work as an art critic and teacher as he was as a painter.

Biography

Norman Garstin – 1847 – 1926

Garstin was born in Ireland and was brought up by his grandparents. He first set out to be an engineer, then an architect, and then sought his fortune prospecting for diamonds in South Africa in the company of Cecil Rhodes.

On return to Ireland, he decided on a career as an artist. Although he started by painting in his spare time, by the late 1870s through the early 1880s he was studying in both Paris and Antwerp.

He arrived in Newlyn in 1886, moving to Penzance in 1889 where he finally settled, living at Wellington Terrace. To supplement the sparse income from picture sales, he taught painting, his most notable students being Harold Harvey and his own daughter, Alethea Garstin, who became a notable painter in her own right.

His most famous work is ‘The Rain it Raineth Every Day’, 1889, showing Penzance promenade on a rainy day. The composition of this painting demonstrates Garstin’s admiration for Japanese art, which was influencing so many artists at this time, including Whistler, whose work Garstin also admired. The title is taken from Shakespeare, where it is found both in ‘Twelfth Night’ and ‘King Lear’.

N.B. Penlee House currently has three further Norman Garstin works on long-term loan from Tate: for details please see www.tate.org.uk

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Visit Us

Penlee House is a beautiful art gallery and museum, set within sub-tropical gardens, with a great café.

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Exhibitions

Our vibrant exhibition programme celebrates the nationally important art and history of West Cornwall.

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Learning

From school visits to family activities, talks and walks, there are plenty of learning opportunities at Penlee House.

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Our Café

Enjoy a delicious lunch or coffee at the Orangery Café, with its sunny terrace overlooking the park.

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