This was a Roman Catholic Arts and Crafts community based on a medieval guild established in Ditchling in Sussex in 1921 by Eric Gill, his assistant Joseph Cribb (both of whom had moved there in 1907), Hilary Pepler and Edward Johnston. Its ideals were expressed in Cribb's carved lettering on a Hoptonwood stone plaque, carved in Latin and English, now in The Wilson, Cheltenham that reads 'Men rich in virtue studying beautifulness living in peace in their houses.' The Guild, with its chapel and workshops, flourished from the 1920s in spite of Gill leaving for Capel-y-ffin in Wales in 1924, until the 1980s. Developed in association with Grant Waters, Art Detective Group Leader: South East England, East England and the Midlands.

5 artworks
  • Eric Gill (1882–1940)

    Sleeping Christ c.1924
    Eric Gill (1882–1940)
    Wood
    H 30.5 x W 43.2 x D 13.3 cm
    Manchester Art Gallery
    Sleeping Christ
    Image credit: Manchester Art Gallery

  • Joseph Cribb (1892–1967)

    Saint Dominic late 20th C
    Herbert Joseph Cribb (1892–1967)
    Portland stone
    H 41 x W 13 x D 8 cm
    Brighton & Hove Museums
    Saint Dominic
    © the copyright holder. Image credit: Brighton & Hove Museums

  • David Jones (1895–1974)

    Our Lady of the Hills 1921
    David Jones (1895–1974)
    Oil on canvas
    H 61 x W 61 cm
    Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft
    Our Lady of the Hills
    © trustees of the David Jones estate / Bridgeman Images. Image credit: Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft

  • Philip Hagreen (1890–1988)

    Professor James Sully (1842–1923) 1918
    Philip Hagreen (1890–1988)
    Oil on canvas
    H 45.8 x W 35.6 cm
    UCL Culture
    Professor James Sully (1842–1923)
    © the artist's estate. Image credit: UCL Culture

  • Dunstan Pruden (1906–1974)

    Skull mid 20th C
    Dunstan Pruden (1906–1974)
    Silver
    H 23.2 x W 16 x D 10.3 cm
    Brighton & Hove Museums
    Skull
    © the artist's estate. Image credit: Brighton & Hove Museums