Events & Exhibitions
Weekly Sessions
Memory Works Dementia group
2 - 3pm
CST helps people living with mild to moderate dementia maximise cognition, independence, and wellbeing. The sessions will provide mental and memory stimulation, allowing participants to experience the learning process once again. CST is a group approach and builds self-esteem and confidence to join conversations and share interests. Some sessions will use images and items from our heritage collection. Carers will be able to enjoy a cuppa in our café and a chance to share their ups and downs.
January
The Close
24-01-25 to 09-03-25
The Close in Thorney Hill was a temporary cul-de-sac of prefabricated homes erected by Hampshire County Council and in operation between 1964-1974. Its purpose was to act as a stepping stone to ‘assimilate’ gypsy families into permanent council house accommodation. We will be displaying the finds from a recent excavation of the site and telling the story of this forgotten chapter in the long history of New Forest Romani gypsies.
March
Pathways from Protest to Purpose
14-03-25 to 06-04-25
Dr Jo Nurse (local artist, Fellow of the World Academy of Art & Science) and Damian Kelly Basher (local writer-performer and Hampshire Poet Laureate) will be using painting, poetry and film to explore the idea of choosing our path to create the world we want and a New Forest preserved for future generations.
April
New Forest Marque
11-04-25 to 05-05-25
New Forest Marque is a food and produce scheme championing local food and craft producers and promoting traditional practices. This exhibition will profile and showcase the work of several members who use material from the Forest in their work.
May
Booksigning by John Leete
3rd May
Ahead of VE Day 80 on 8th May, author and journalist John Leete will be joining us to sign copies of the latest of his 3 books on the New Forest in wartime. World War II, New Forest Discovered builds on John’s earlier works, including information on sites and investigations gained from the New Forest National Park Authority’s “The Wartime Memories Project”.
May
Exhibition by the New Forest Camera Club
09-05-25 to 08-06-25
Based between Totton and Ashurst on the edge of the New Forest, NFCC will be displaying members’ images of Forest scenes in our gallery
May
Alice Talk by Angela Trend
9th May
Local historian and expert on the real Alice and her life in Lyndhurst, Angela Trend will be giving a talk in the Community Centre. Angela will be focusing on the Alice’s life as a Hargreaves and the family home, Cuffnells. Ticketing details to be released in due course and will be able to be purchased via a button which will appear here.
May
Alice Walk by Mark Davies
10th May
Trustee of the Lewis Carroll Society, Speaker, Author and Guide, Mark Davies will be leading a walk in and around Lyndhurst visiting sites associated with the real Alice and ending with a tea party, of course. Details and ticketing to follow here in due course.
May
Fossil Walk with Dr James Barnet
24th May
James is a paleoceanographer who was born and brought up in Bramshaw, where he was fascinated from an early age in the New Forest’s little-known fossil deposits. James is now a lecturer in the Earth Sciences Department at St Andrew’s University. Last year, his fossil walk was oversubscribed, so he will this year be guiding another fossil-hunting trip to a different part of the Forest.
Details and booking arrangements to follow here.
June
Exhibition by Brockenhurst College students
13-06-25 to 30-06-25
Our gallery will be used again this year by Design and Photography students from Brock College to display their final-year projects in a professional setting. Their work is inspired by items and themes from our library and object collection.
August
Hampshire Open Studios - New Forest Marque Inspired
16-08-25 to 14-09-25
New Forest Marque Inspired members will be coming together again under the Hampshire Open Studios initiative, which promotes artists and craftspeople across the county. Last year’s event involved over a dozen local talents displaying and selling their work in our gallery. It was extremely popular and successful, and we will be continuing our support this year.
September
A Life Through Art - Barry Peckham Memorial Exhibition
20-09-25 to 12-10-25
Barry Peckham was one of most talented New Forest artists of his generation, and an immensely kind and modest man. His passing last autumn was a moment of great sadness but in this exhibition, which will be put together by his family, the man and his work will be remembered.
September
Barry Peckham Memorial Lecture - The History of Art in The New Forest
25th September
Georgina Babey is an expert on art history in the New Forest and author of New Forest Painters. In Barry’s memory, Georgina will be giving a lecture on New Forest artists past. She will also talk about the power of art and the New Forest Art Exhibition in London in 1875 which played such an important role in the eventual passing of the New Forest Act of 1877.
December
Exhibition by Kamil Woj
05-12-25 to 31-12-25
Kamil came to the UK from Poland in 2005 for artistic and personal development. He is a professional musician by trade and has recently found a passion for painting. He spends much of his time painting in the New Forest. His art reflects his emotions and his own life experiences. This is the first opportunity he has been given to exhibit his work in a public space.
Past events and exhibitions