The new Woodyer Art Studios were opened on February 8 by Adam Knibb (North 2000).
The building, which started its life as the Rhodes Block, has been refurbished and it was decided to re-name it after Henry Woodyer, the man who was the architect of many of the oldest school buildings. The Rhodes name will be retained as that of the third girls’ house which opens in September.
James Nairne, Cranleigh’s Director of Art, said: “Art and culture remain at the heart of a Cranleigh education. 40 pupils are doing art GCSE this year, while 18 will take the subject at A Level. Six plan to study art after school – three are going to do foundation courses, one to do architecture, one to do landscape design and one to do automotive design. We wanted to honour Woodyer with the name, he isn’t well known today but was an eminent architect in his time. He was commissioned to design the School and he built the oldest parts of our campus, including the fine Neo-Gothic chapel.”
After Cranleigh, Knibb of Adam Knibb Architects undertook his architectural education at the Welsh School of Architecture, before completing his RIBA Part 3 qualification at Oxford Brookes University. He now heads up a small architectural design team based in Winchester, who specialise in sustainable design projects, tailored for each individual client.
The opening coincides with the annual exhibition of Lower VIth art; the exhibition remains open until February 25.
