Dimbola Lodge
Encyclopedia
Dimbola Lodge was the Isle of Wight
home of the Victorian pioneer photographer Julia Margaret Cameron
from 1860 to 1875.
It is now the home of the Julia Margaret Cameron Trust, and a photographic museum.
bought two adjacent cottages in Freshwater Bay
from a local fisherman called Jacob Long in 1860. In order to make the house look more beautiful to her friends returning from the beach, they were linked by a central tower in the Gothic
style current at the time. The structure dominates the skyline from Freshwater Bay and gives a focus to the surrounding area.
The lodge took its name from the family's coffee
(later tea) plantation
in Dimbula, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).
Dimbola Lodge served as both her home and her studio. It was here that the greatest of Julia Margaret Cameron's photographs were made.
After the Camerons returned to Ceylon the property was again divided into two parts. These were later renamed Dimbola, which became a private residence and holiday flats, and Cameron House which eventually became unoccupied and under the threat of demolition by developers. The Julia Margaret Cameron Trust acquired both properties in 1993 and it is now open to the public as a photographic museum and exhibition space.
In 2006, a statue tribute to Jimi Hendrix
was erected here, looking out towards Afton Down
from the site of Dimbola Lodge.
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
home of the Victorian pioneer photographer Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron was a British photographer. She became known for her portraits of celebrities of the time, and for photographs with Arthurian and other legendary themes....
from 1860 to 1875.
It is now the home of the Julia Margaret Cameron Trust, and a photographic museum.
History of the property
Julia Margaret CameronJulia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron was a British photographer. She became known for her portraits of celebrities of the time, and for photographs with Arthurian and other legendary themes....
bought two adjacent cottages in Freshwater Bay
Freshwater Bay
Freshwater Bay can refer to:*The cove on the south coast of the Isle of Wight, England: see Freshwater, Isle of Wight*The bay in Newfoundland, Canada: see Freshwater Bay, Newfoundland*Freshwater Bay, Barbados*Freshwater Bay...
from a local fisherman called Jacob Long in 1860. In order to make the house look more beautiful to her friends returning from the beach, they were linked by a central tower in the Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
style current at the time. The structure dominates the skyline from Freshwater Bay and gives a focus to the surrounding area.
The lodge took its name from the family's coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
(later tea) plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
in Dimbula, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).
Dimbola Lodge served as both her home and her studio. It was here that the greatest of Julia Margaret Cameron's photographs were made.
After the Camerons returned to Ceylon the property was again divided into two parts. These were later renamed Dimbola, which became a private residence and holiday flats, and Cameron House which eventually became unoccupied and under the threat of demolition by developers. The Julia Margaret Cameron Trust acquired both properties in 1993 and it is now open to the public as a photographic museum and exhibition space.
In 2006, a statue tribute to Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
was erected here, looking out towards Afton Down
Afton Down
Afton Down is a hill near the village of Freshwater on the Isle of Wight.It was the site of the Isle of Wight Festival 1970, where the Guinness Book of Records estimates 600,000 to 700,000, and possibly 800,000 people, flocked to see the musical talents of Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Free, The Who,...
from the site of Dimbola Lodge.
External links
- Dimbola Lodge website - dimbola.co.uk
- Isle of Wight Digital Imaging Group Dimbola Lodge is the new home for IWDIG meetings.