If these walls could talk, they would have quite a story to tell.
Today, visitors wander through the Tithebarn Workshops, popping into galleries, studios and independent shops, often commenting on the beautiful stone buildings and wondering just how old they are. It’s easy to imagine they’ve always looked this welcoming.
But these walls have lived many lives.
Long before paintings adorned the walls and visitors browsed for handmade gifts, these buildings were working cow byres belonging to Barton Farm. They echoed with very different sounds – the rattle of milk churns, the clatter of tractors and the unmistakable soundtrack of a busy farm. Some of our locals still remember the days as a working farm.
Looking at these old photographs from the 1970s and 1980s is like opening a time capsule.
The first thing that strikes you is just how different everything was, yet very fimiliar. Before there were shop windows, there were open-fronted cattle sheds. Before there were flower pots and visitors enjoying coffee in the sunshine, there were muddy tracks, piles of stone, building materials and the occasional rather battered-looking work vehicles.
It’s difficult to imagine that the gallery where Serena now spends her days painting was once home to livestock rather than landscapes.
The photographs of the renovation work are perhaps the most fascinating. You can see the transformation beginning to take shape as windows are carefully added to the old stone buildings. It’s a reminder that preserving history isn’t about freezing it in time – sometimes it’s about giving it a whole new purpose while respecting everything that came before.
And what a wonderful purpose these old buildings have found.
Today, instead of housing cattle, they provide homes for artists, makers and craftspeople. Creativity has replaced farming, but in many ways the spirit hasn’t changed. These workshops are still places where people work with their hands, where skill is passed on, and where every day brings something new.
We often think history belongs in museums, but sometimes it’s quietly all around us. Every stone in these buildings has witnessed decades of change, from farm life to restoration, and now to a thriving community of independent businesses that welcomes visitors from all over the world.
We feel incredibly lucky to play a small part in that continuing story.
So next time you visit SerenArts Gallery, perhaps spare a thought for the generations who worked here before us. The walls may not be able to talk, but if they could, we’re sure they’d have plenty more stories to share.
And who knows… perhaps one day, someone will look back at photographs of today’s gallery and wonder what life was like here in the 2020s.
Let’s hope they notice that at least one thing hasn’t changed… these old buildings are still full of life.
