In 1932 the artist Edward Bawden and his wife Charlotte moved into Brick House in the Essex village of Great Bardfield, initially sharing the house with another artistic couple, Eric Ravilious and Tirzah Garwood. 

(Please click on the blue print above to continue reading)

It was to be the beginning of a fascinating artistic community. In the years before and during the Second World War, painters, printmakers and desgners settled in the village, relishing the peace while remaining within easy reach of London. While Barden and Ravilious saw active service as War Artists (avilious dying in 1942), other artists captured the soon- to- change world of rural England through the Recording Britain project. By the mid-1950s a diverse, innovative but highly creative group had made Bardfield their home – much to the bemusement of the local villagers, who found the complex relationships and artistic focus of the newcomers rather baffling. In 1954 the artists invited the public into their homes and studios to see their work, startng the increasingly popular 'Open Studios' movement that now covers the country, and persuading some of their neighbours that artists could be quite ormal people after all.

Jo has combined teaching and lecturing with a career in art bookselling and has been a volunteer guide at both Tate Britain and Tate Modern.  She has lectured for the Arts Society, the Art Fund, and Friends of Dulwich Picture Gallery.