The Royal Society of Sculptors thanks the Brian Mercer Charitable Trust, the Gilbert Bayes Charitable Trust, and the Mirisch & Lebenheim Charitable Foundation for their ongoing support.

Dora House Ilustration

Creating a Home for Sculptors 2024 - ongoing

The third (and ongoing) phase of restoring Dora House, our Grade II listed home in London's South Kensington, focuses on completely reimagining our basement.

Our vision is to create a beautiful, self-contained one-bedroom flat and studio space to accommodate artists in residence, as well as space for our fascinating archive and community activities.   Inspired by Dora House's past residents, the welcoming space will continue the building's creative lineage.

Click here to find out more about Creating a Home for Sculptors

 

Saving Dora House 2020-23

In 2022 we set out to save our unique Grade II listed home on Old Brompton Road. With its rich artistic history and ornate architecture, Dora House has long been a South Kensington landmark. Yet, it was in urgent need of repair.

Our friends, members and supporters responded generously to our appeal to save Dora House.  In December we were delighted to announce that the external restoration was complete and in February 2023 we were able to, once again, open the doors of Dora House.

The restoration of Dora House in 2022 was made possible thanks to the support of our friends, members and donors, including:

  • Deborah Loeb Brice Donor Advised Fund
  • Mirisch & Lebenheim Charitable Foundation
  • Garfield Weston Foundation
  • Foyle Foundation
  • Barrie Roman and Henry Richardson
  • The Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea
  • Heritage of London Trust
  • Katherine Ashton
  • North Street Trust
  • Woolbeding Charity
  • Paul S Zuckerman
  • Ironmongers’ Foundation
  • Paul & Louise Cooke Endowment
  • The Finnis Scott Foundation
  • Pennycress Trust
  • Masons Company Charitable Trust
  • SRO Motorsports Group

Click here to find out more about the Saving Dora House project

We are also grateful to The Pilgrim Trust for awarding us funding to commence renovations of Dora House; and to the People’s Postcode Trust for supporting our intergenerational project, as well as Milwyn and the Worshipful Company of Masons.

In relation to our archive, we are delighted to have secured support from the Paul Mellon Centre, for Pioneering Women, a research project which shines a spotlight on the lives, careers and legacies of the talented and extraordinary women at the heart of the Society. In addition, we thank the National Lottery Heritage Fund First World War: Then and Now, which has supported our Cecil Thomas: Soldier Sculptor project, which examines Thomas’s first-hand account of the First World War through a variety of activities that explore and share his unique archive.