Kim Marsland’s photographs of the Charleston Farmhouse before it became famous are fascinating. They show the home of the Bloomsbury Group unchanged since Duncan Grant’s death in 1978..

Join Kim in celebrating a brilliant new edition of her gorgeous book, Charleston 1981, at a slide show and presentation about her experience photographing the house.

As an art student in 1981, Kim Marsland became aware of the farmhouse where Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant lived and worked. Few books had been written about the Bloomsbury Group at the time, so Marsland contacted Charleston’s first curator to arrange a visit.

Left alone to wander from room to room, she came across open sketchbooks, abandoned photographs, piles of books, drawings, paintbrushes and a crooked lampshade, all as Grant had left them. The photographs she took that day, now published in this new edition, are intensely evocative. They offer a fascinating view of past lives and a remarkable sense of place, hinting at Charleston’s vibrant and highly unconventional history.

Kim’s book has been out of print for a decade, so we’re delighted that Random Spectacular - the publishing arm of St Judes – has brought it back to life in an updated edition.

Kim studied at the Royal College of Art in London, where she was taught by Quentin Blake and Sheila Robinson. She is an artist and lecturer. Kim will be speaking in the first-floor event room at The Star Inn, Alfriston from 3pm on Sunday 6 December.

Entry costs £6 in advance - you may stop in Much Ado, or use this form to secure a place at the talk. (We won’t issue tickets - we’ll keep a guest list instead.)