19 Mar Who inspired the Dartington Experiment?
A 20 minute drive from Paignton & the Beaches B and B is the extremely interesting, creative and innovative Dartington Hall Trust near Totnes South Devon.
In 1925 Dorothy & Leonard Elmhirst bought a crumbling 14th Century estate with Dorothy’s inherited wealth exploring the idea of how they could change the world & create a better society.
Over time the Dartington Hall Trust became famous as a multicultural centre, a testbed of innovation and a campus of progressive learning. It attracted some of the great artists, educators, & political philosophers of the day.
Today the Dartington Hall trust runs 16 charitable programmes.It specialises in the arts, sustainability & social justice.
The gardens are Grade 2 listed and were designed by Dorothy Elmhirst.They are only a 2 min walk from the car park & for full exploration of them takes 1-2 hrs. Within them there is an ancient yew tree reputedly thought to be 2000 yrs old.Also rumoured that the Kinght’s Templar are buried there but there is no evidence to substantiate this.
The Estate has 880 acres of forest, abundant wildlife & clear rivers which produce beautiful scenery for walks of all abilities & lengths.
There are shops at Dartington selling beautiful glassware, the world famous Dartington crystal, crafts, unique pieces of jewellery & delicious locally produced Devonshire food treats.
There is also a unique onsite cinema in a converted 15th century venue showing both arthouse, world & mainstream cinema.