Why join this workshop
Time and space to practise the art of attention, to observe the world more closely
Develop the skills to express your ideas, experiences and observations in any medium
Limited to 8 participants, so there will be time for individual guidance and discussion
An opportunity to stop and experience the quiet of the North Norfolk coast
The Cranmer Studio chef will prepare lunch and supper with fresh, local ingredients
Schedule
27 May, Resident guests arrive from 4 pm
28 - 29 May, Day guests join from 9am
Workshop for all guests 10am - 4pm
30 May, Resident guests depart 11am
Location
The workshop will be hosted at Cranmer Studio. Our location is far enough away to break with the familiarity of the status quo and encourage reflection. North Norfolk, on the east coast of England, is famous for its expansive skyline. Cranmer is a three-hour drive from London, or a 90-minute train journey. We can provide transport to and from the train station for resident guests.
Focus and purpose
Your tutor - Julia Bell
Julia Bell is a writer and Professor of New Writing at Birkbeck, University of London, where she co-directs the Centre for New Writing. She is the author of Radical Attention (Peninsula Press), the verse memoir Hymnal (Parthian) and Between the Lines (Simon & Schuster), as well as three novels. Her essays and fiction have appeared in The Paris Review, the TLS, The White Review and on BBC Radio. She has taught writing for nearly thirty years, in London and in Berlin, Singapore, Dhaka and Bangkok.
How philosophers, writers and artists have thought about attention, and why it matters now.
Most of what passes in front of us goes unseen. This weekend is for looking slowly at a field, a room, a sentence, a stranger, and at the habits of mind that decide what we notice. Working alongside writers and artists who made attention their subject, we’ll take their ideas out into the Norfolk landscape and respond in words, drawings or photographs. No experience is needed, and nothing has to be finished.
What participants can expect to learn
Ways to notice the overlooked details of ordinary places.
How a prompt can work as permission to begin not as a test.
How to respond to the same material in more than one medium.
A way of working to carry on with at home.
Open to any creative practice
Photo Peter Clark
Booking
Non Residential
two day course
includes freshly prepared lunch
£280 per person
Residential
Two day course
breakfast, lunch and supper. Starting with supper on the 27th and ending with breakfast on the 30th May
three nights' accommodation, towels and linen are provided
£805 per person for sole occupancy of a room
Residential course fees are for sole occupancy of a room. Lower rates may be available for guests sharing a room, including partners who are not participating in the workshop. Please contact us for details.
Bring a Friend Offer
Come to Cranmer Studio with a friend and, if at least one of you has not previously attended a paid Cranmer Studio course, you will both receive £100 off a residential course or £50 off a non-residential course.
You do not need to book at the same time. Simply let us know the name of the person you are coming with, and we will apply the discount to both bookings.
Workshop at Cranmer Studio
Please book your place. We will confirm availability and ask you to pay the deposit. The balance is due 30 days before the workshop.
Thank you - we will confirm availability in the next 24 hours.
Have you seen our gallery?
Course Booking Terms & Conditions
1. Booking Conditions
Bookings are provisional until confirmed by email from Cranmer Studio.
We will advise you of the availability of onsite accommodation when you book.
A 20% deposit, calculated on the full course fee before any promotional discounts, is required to secure your booking.
The remaining balance is payable 30 days before the course begins. For bookings made within 30 days of the start date, the full fee is payable upon confirmation.
Payment is by bank transfer or by redeeming an eligible Cranmer Studio gift voucher. Payment instructions will be provided when your booking is confirmed.
Non-residential guests are welcome to join us for supper for an additional £35 per evening.
Cranmer Studio does not currently charge VAT.
2. Cancellations, Refunds and Transfers
More than 30 days before the course: If you cancel, we will refund any payments received, excluding the 20% deposit.
30 days or fewer before the course: Cancellation charges may be up to the full course fee.
Cancellation charges: We will not retain more than our reasonable net losses resulting from cancellation, taking account of costs saved and any replacement booking. This also applies to any deposit retained.
Gift voucher refunds: Where a refund is due, any amount paid using a gift voucher will normally be returned as gift voucher credit.
Transfers: You may request to transfer your booking to another person or a future course up to 7 days before the start date. Transfers are subject to availability and approval by Cranmer Studio.
Non-attendance: The full fee will normally be retained if you do not attend.
Cancellation by Cranmer Studio: If we cancel a course, you will receive a full refund of all payments made to us, including your deposit. We are not responsible for independently arranged travel or third-party accommodation costs.
3. Your Responsibilities
Please inform us when booking of any dietary requirements, accessibility needs or relevant medical conditions that may affect your participation.
You are responsible for ensuring that you are physically able to participate in the course activities.
We recommend that you arrange appropriate travel insurance, including cover for cancellation, illness and personal belongings.
Cranmer Studio does not sell alcohol. Guests are welcome to bring a small quantity of wine or beer to enjoy with dinner.
Please obtain permission from other participants before photographing or filming them.
Photography or filming of portrait and life models is not permitted.
4. Facilities and Practical Information
Parking is available onsite.
Where required, we will provide transport for residential participants to and from King's Lynn Train station and organised landscape painting locations.
Cranmer Studio occupies an 18th-century property with some uneven surfaces. Please take appropriate care and let us know if you have any accessibility concerns.
Dogs are not permitted.
5. Discounts and Special Offers
Cranmer Studio may offer promotional discounts, referral incentives or other special offers from time to time.
Only one discount or promotional offer may be applied per person per course booking. Discounts cannot be combined or accumulated.
Unless otherwise stated, promotional discounts are deducted from the final balance rather than the initial deposit.
Discounts have no cash alternative and cannot be applied retrospectively unless agreed by Cranmer Studio.
We reserve the right to amend or withdraw promotional offers for future bookings. Discounts already confirmed will be honoured, subject to the conditions of the relevant offer.
Gift vouchers are treated as a method of payment, not as a promotional discount. They may therefore be redeemed alongside an eligible discount or special offer, including the Bring a Friend offer.
Gift voucher redemption is subject to our separate Gift Voucher Terms & Conditions. Any applicable promotional discount is deducted from the course fee before the gift voucher is applied.
6. Bring a Friend Offer
The offer applies to two guests attending the same Cranmer Studio course, provided at least one has not previously attended a paid Cranmer Studio course or workshop.
Each guest receives a £100 discount on their residential course fee or a £50 discount on their non-residential course fee, according to their individual booking.
Bookings may be made together or separately. If booking separately, please provide the name of the person you are attending with.
The standard 20% deposit is calculated on the full course fee before any discount. The Bring a Friend discount is deducted from the final balance, not from the deposit.
Both guests must have confirmed bookings and attend the same course. If either guest cancels, the remaining guest will no longer qualify for the discount.
If either guest cancels, Cranmer Studio reserves the right to take account of any promotional discount already granted when calculating the reasonable cancellation costs arising from that booking. Any cancellation charge will reflect our reasonable net loss.
The offer cannot be combined with any other discount, promotional code or special offer. Gift vouchers may be used as a method of payment alongside the offer.
The offer has no cash alternative and cannot be applied retrospectively unless agreed by Cranmer Studio.
Our standard booking, payment and cancellation conditions apply separately to each guest.
We may amend or withdraw this offer for future bookings. Discounts already confirmed will be honoured, subject to the conditions of the offer.
7. General Terms
These booking conditions form part of the Cranmer Studio Terms & Conditions
Gift vouchers redeemed towards course bookings are also subject to our separate Gift Voucher Terms & Conditions
Nothing in these conditions excludes or limits any statutory consumer rights or liabilities that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.
What to bring and recommended reading
Please bring:
A notebook, pencils and a phone or camera.
Comfortable shoes and waterproofs for working outdoors.
Recommended reading:
Iris Murdoch, The Sovereignty of Good
Georges Perec, Species of Spaces and An Attempt at Exhausting a Place in Paris
Simone Weil, “Reflections on the Right Use of School Studies”, in Waiting for God
Virginia Woolf, “A Sketch of the Past”, in Moments of Being
Julia Bell, Radical Attention
Hospitality & Accommodation
Our chef prepares a light lunch for all guests, while residential guests also enjoy a self-serve breakfast and a two-course set menu dinner. Guests eat together around a shared table. We are happy to discuss food preferences and dietary requirements in advance.
Accommodation includes four king size bedrooms located on the first floor of the wing of Cranmer Hall. Two ensuite bedrooms and two further bedrooms that share a bathroom.
Cranmer Hall is an 18th-century listed building with uneven thresholds and staircases. All bedrooms are on the first floor. Ground-level accommodation may be available nearby by arrangement, and transport can be provided. Please describe any access requirements when you register and we will be glad to explore what arrangements may be possible.
