St Ives was home to Barbara Hepworth, one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th century. After her death in 1975, Hepworth’s sculpture garden and her workshop were kept intact. Visit the museum and pick your way through the dense, organic structures cast in iron against a tangle of flowers and greenery.

While we’re all for supporting the little folks, it would be simply wrong of us not to give Tate St Ives a shout-out. Compared to its behemothic London siblings, it’s small, but its exhibitions – which usually cover themes local to the area – are impressive and the gallery itself has pinch-me views across the cove.

This place sings on a blue skies-day. Sculptures by internationally renowned artists like Richard Long and David Nash are staggered throughout a valley replete with a patchwork of palms and a subtropical botanical garden which looks out over St Michael’s Mount. Bliss.

Contemporary art? In Cornwall? Yes, really. This gallery first
opened its doors in 1895, but it feels thoroughly modern thanks to
a changing schedule of exhibitions covering themes on everything
from LGBTQ+ rights to the British class system. If you’re in
Penzance for the evening, book onto a life-drawing class at Newlyn
Art School.

It’s unlikely that you’d stumble upon this place, which sits in
a few abandoned warehouses on the very edge of Wadebridge. Inside,
a gleaming series of white cubes open up – their walls sparsely
decorated with CIRCLE’s roster of contemporary artists. The art
here is the sort of stuff that makes you think, but that you also
wouldn’t mind sitting centre-stage in your home.

When people talk about St Ives being a potter’s paradise, more
often than not they’re referring to The Leach Pottery. First opened
in 1920, this legendary studio has played a formative role in
shaping the history of British pottery. Today, visitors can delve
into The Leach Pottery’s legendary history or sign on for a
masterclass. Go easy on the pedal, yeah?

The Penwith Gallery is a vast multistorey gallery which presents work created by the Penwith Society of Arts in Cornwall. While there is plenty of two-dimensional work to ogle, you’ll be rapt by the iridescent ceramics and masterful clay-stuffs on show.

Perhaps you’ve been to one of The Drang Gallery’s other outposts in the south-west. If so, you’ll know the focus here is on big names, not up-and-coming could-be-somebodies. We’re talking Marc Quinn, Tracey Emin and David Shrigley; artists whose work sits at the core of popular British culture.