Sarah Brittain-Mansbridge, the Director of Cornwall Contemporary gallery in Penzance has been announced as the recipient of an MBE for Services to Art in the King’s Birthday Honours List.
Sarah grew up in west Cornwall near St. Just and graduated from Falmouth School of Art in 1996 and started her career in art by working for various galleries including Tate St Ives before opening Cornwall Contemporary in Penzance in 2006.
Since founding her own gallery, she has forged a high-profile reputation for showcasing the best names in Cornish art and promoting young and emerging artists, selling their art around the world. In addition to writing several books on art which have been published, she has also brought big names such as the comedian Vic Reeves to exhibit in Penzance and has been featured on BBC, ITV and Sky Arts. She was made a Trade Ambassador for the Department of International Trade, going on several trips to the US where she has grown a large customer base who now collect art from Cornish painters.
She has mentored several young and early career artists and given lectures to groups of graduate artists on how best to navigate the artworld and how to approach galleries, giving many portfolio workshops and visiting countless artist studios. Throughout her career, she has secured many high-profile commissions for her artists including placing
works on permanent display in The Dorchester, London, supplying paintings for office spaces in South Africa and Paris as well as placing works in Gordon Ramsay Restaurant and working with several interior designers globally.
Sarah says of receiving this honour; “I’m thrilled to be able to share this special news that I’ve had to keep under my hat for a while. I was hugely overwhelmed to receive the letter from the Cabinet Office at the beginning of May which informed me that I have been awarded an MBE for Services to Art. I feel incredibly humbled and grateful to have been considered for such an honour. Having to keep it secret for 6 weeks made it feel slightly surreal but was actually really lovely - just myself, my husband and very close family knew and it gave me time to reflect back on my career and of the many highlights, which you don’t often do when you are running a business and all the day to day demands that brings.
It means the absolute world to me and it’s been the privilege of my life to have spent the last 28 years working with talented artists and promoting art in Cornwall, in my hometown of Penzance. It’s an honour that I share with all of the wonderful artists I’ve ever worked with, I'm immensely proud that their artwork is now in collector's homes around the world which is a testament to their talent. I also share it with my brilliant staff, SJ, Maggie, Emma and Jess and everyone who has been such a champion of what we do here at Cornwall Contemporary - we love to hear from our customers and followers worldwide, their enthusiasm for our artist's work is what makes our job so special.
And of course, I also share it with my always supportive husband Dom. I’m so lucky to be part of such a thriving art community and this recognition is the absolute cherry on top. It makes me determined to continue to endeavour to create opportunities for artists to shine and I have some very exciting exhibitions to come, including Neil Pinkett’s From the Water show which has seen him work from a sea kayak to capture Cornwall from a different angle and we have a special Jessica Cooper exhibition later this year along with some very exciting events planned for 2026 which will be the 20th anniversary of opening Cornwall Contemporary. As for this year, I’m sure the highlight will be my investiture at the palace and receiving my medal!”
For further information and interviews please contact
Sarah Brittain-Mansbridge
Director
Cornwall Contemporary
http://www.cornwallcontemporary.com/
01736 874749
HIGH RES IMAGES :https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/0s2wf1v7xl62dl8t7v9b9/AGMLzlbPCMm1XS8oksTvnsY?rlkey=j3w5og7u2uwlbzcwxt8qllh7k&st=gmo1txy4&dl=0