TW8 Area Guide

Decorate a plant pot with us at Boston Manor House! Inspired by the House's grounds and the natural imagery inside, create your own terracotta plant pot and take home your own piece of Boston Manor beauty!. You might even use the House's nature inspired designs or our magnificent cedar trees (planted in 1754 by the Clitherow family, from seeds that Joseph Banks gave to them) to make your pot even more impressive.

This workshop invites participants to reflect on how identity is formed, expressed and transformed, particularly within hybrid or migrant contexts. Through conversation, analysis of artworks, creative making, and storytelling, participants will explore their own cultural narratives. Each participant will produce a visual piece and the option of a recorded story, contributing to a growing archive of Anglo-Polish experiences. The workshop will be led by artist, Ania Ruszkowski [https://www.aniaruszkowski.com/]and inspired by our current exhibition, My Country is My Home: The Polish Community in the United Kingdom

Explore the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with 326 acres of stunning rare plants from around the world. Discover the Azalea Garden, Minka House, Bamboo Garden, and more at Kew Gardens, including the majestic 10-storey Pagoda and the Rhizotron. Immerse yourself in the tropical oasis of Temperate House, home to a stunning collection of African plants and sub-tropical trees and palms. Admission to Kew Gardens Entrance Ticket. Explore 326 acres of flora worldwide. Walk through tranquil gardens, a UNESCO Heritage Site. Guided tours available to enhance your experience. Marvel at the diverse plant collection throughout. Wheelchair accessible. Infants and small children in prams/strollers. Service animals welcome. Public transport nearby. Suitable for all fitness levels. Customers under 16 need adult accompaniment. Black Friday.hidden-word { display: none; }

Tales from along the Silk Road from Japan, China, Mongolia, India, Kurdistan, Iraq and Arabia There may be magic tea-kettles, travelling artists, rice-straw coats of invisibility, tuneable frogs, amiable lions, and talking birds. Learn how to defeat a hungry lion, how playing a flute can win your freedom, how a sly yellow fox can gain you a fortune, and what is the sweetest meat? Join Sarah to find out more...and expect the unexpected!

This October, Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery unveils Howard Hodgkin: In a Public Garden — the largest institutional exhibition of original prints by the acclaimed British artist to date. Curated by renowned art historian Richard Calvocoressi, this landmark show features around 60 vibrant, emotionally charged prints that span five decades of Hodgkin’s career, from 1966 to 2016. Installed throughout Pitzhanger’s contemporary gallery and the atmospheric rooms of the historic Manor itself, this retrospective-in-print immerses visitors in Hodgkin’s world of colour, memory, and abstraction. His bold, gestural works — full of nuance and feeling — transform the building into a living canvas of moments remembered and reimagined. As curator Richard Calvocoressi notes, “In the case of Howard Hodgkin, the term ‘prints’ is perhaps misleading. Many of them were hand-coloured by the artist or his collaborators and come close to being one-offs, like paintings; and as such, they make a powerful impact on their environment. Working from memory and imagination, Hodgkin created images of transience, in which ambiguous, dissolving forms are the pictorial equivalent of an autobiographical sensation or perception. I hope visitors will be both moved and exhilarated by this exhibition.” Highlights include Venetian Views (1995), a rarely united series of lyrical cityscapes, and Swimming (2011), created for the London 2012 Olympics. This marks the second time Hodgkin’s work has been exhibited at Pitzhanger. He was drawn to the building’s distinctive light and architecture for a 2009 exhibition — before the major restoration and reopening in 2019 — establishing a meaningful connection with the site that continues today. A setting steeped in art and architecture, Pitzhanger Manor was the country home of visionary architect Sir John Soane, built between 1800 and 1804. Designed as a showcase for his most experimental ideas, the Manor also has a rich artistic legacy – Soane often welcomed leading artists of the day, including frequent guest and kindred spirit J.M.W. Turner. Further details about the exhibition will be released closer to the opening date—subscribe to our newsletter to stay updated on this exhibition.

Marley was dead... to begin with... It’s Christmas Eve, and Ebenezer Scrooge is alone in his room, dreaming of money. Except... he’s not alone. As the night draws on, spirits come to him; spirits of his past, his present, and his future. With each toll of the clock, Scrooge is forced to confront the idea that there is more to life than money... but can he change his ways before it is too late? Charles Dickens’ classic Christmas tale comes to the beautiful Boston Manor House this December, presented by The Arts Centre Hounslow, reimagined as a live radio play.