Watts Chapel

Our main reason for extending our London trip into the Guildford area is to visit Watts Chapel. I’ve wanted to see the interior of this tiny but magnificent building for many years, and it does not disappoint. 

From a distance, the exterior appears plain in its terracotta brick, but even this is intricate, built and decorated from tiles made by local people who were trained by artist Mary Watts. In this way, local terracotta clay has been fashioned into beautiful and symbolic patterns that she designed to decorate the walls of the chapel,  the building of which had been financed by her husband G F Watts. 

But it is the interior that takes my breath away. Every inch of surface is richly decorated with symbolic painting, embellished with gilt and three dimensional modelling. Small wonder it can claim to be one of the most important art nouveau buildings in Britain. It’s absolutely glorious. 

And to make our day even better, we meet up with  our youngest Simon and partner Lloyd who have come to join us for a delightful Sunday lunch. 

As far as is possible therefore every bit of the decoration of this chapel, modelled in clay of Surrey, by Compton hands, under unusual conditions - much of the work having been done gratuitously, and all of it with the love that made the work delightful - as something to say, thought the patterns can claim to be no more than the letters of a great word. 
Mary Watts ‘The Word in the pattern, 1905 


Many thanks for comments, stars etc - I’ve made some efforts to catch up, but tomorrow we head home and normal service will hopefully be resumed!