Artists' shock at gallery closure

The Thebes Gallery, Church Twitten, is to be closed to make room for office space for Lewes District Council.

In a letter to artists using the gallery, chief executive of Lewes District Council, John Crawford, said the closure was due to cost cutting measures.

He said the Thebes Annexe had been used as office space in the past and due to the closure of a council office at 3A, Fisher Street, it needed to return to its old role.

But artist and town councillor Amanda Dean, of De Montfort Road, was appalled by the move.

She said: 'The really wonderful thing about Thebes and the reason both professional and amateur artists are enthusiastic about exhibiting there is the quality of the venue is almost at a professional level.The security and the lighting there makes the most of all the work exhibited there.

'The loss of Thebes will basically undermine and devalue all subsequent exhibitions by artists who are used to the standard of Thebes.

'One of the arguments John Crawford gives is that the district council have always given positive support to a wide variety of cultural activities .

'They made the last arts officer redundant and have not replaced him.

'There is no one within cultural services who has the sort of experience and expertise to be able to take this decision.'

Aspiring artist Joanna Rowdon, of Annes Path, said: 'This is not just about exhibitors it is about people who go to the gallery, it is actually about what Lewes represents to the people who buy houses here, who come here on holidays, who come to visit from the surrounding areas.

'This is what it is about.

'The other thing about Thebes is it is on the beaten track, people notice it as they walk past.

'Other galleries they have to search out but not Thebes.'

A spokeswoman for Lewes District Council said no date had been aggreed for the closure as yet.

She said: 'Lewes District Council has carried out a review of its office accommodation following the decision to dispose of 3A Fisher Street in order to make the savings it needs to.

'This means that the ground floor of Thebes annexe has to be returned to its former use as office accommodation.

'We have recently written to all the artists who have exhibited their work at Thebes explaining the situation and confirming that we will continue to support art exhibitions as part of cultural activities within the district, although not at Thebes annexe.

'A report will be presented to a future cabinet meeting that sets out the background, proposed time frame and implementation.'