A major new exhibition opening this autumn at the Somerset Rural Life Museum will shed fresh light on the life and work of Exmoor writer and artist Hope Bourne. A Life Outside: Hope Bourne on Exmoor runs from 27 September 2025 to 10 January 2026 and is co-curated by Guardian Country Diarist Sara Hudston and Kate Best for the South West Heritage Trust. The exhibition draws on new research by Sara, whose forthcoming book of the same title will be published next year.
Hope Bourne (1918–2010) spent almost sixty years recording the landscape, wildlife, history and changing rural traditions of Exmoor. Fiercely creative and resolutely independent, she led a self-reliant life that gave her the freedom to write, draw and paint. This exhibition considers Hope as one of the West Country’s most significant nature writers, whose work and way of life are especially relevant in this age of environmental crisis.
Lisa Eden, the Deputy-Chair of the Exmoor Society said: “The Hope L. Bourne Collection consists of over 700 books and pamphlets, more than 2,000 sketches and drawings, published and unpublished manuscripts, a mass of cuttings and jottings, photographs and other personal belongings.This vast and fascinating collection offers a window on the life of this remarkable woman and is an irreplaceable record of a place in time.”
Sara Hudston added: “Hope Bourne was one of the 20th century’s greatest nature writers, whose work has been unjustly overlooked in recent years. Her ecological awareness, rejection of materialism, and close relationship with the natural world are of increasing relevance.”
To further explore Hope’s legacy and connection with the Exmoor landscape, a series of events are taking place alongside the exhibition. These include a guided walk, talks, a nature writing workshop, and an ‘in conversation’ evening with Sara Hudston, exploring Women Outside with journalist and author Meg Clothier.
For more information and to book your place, please visit the South West Heritage Trust website here.
Image: Hope Bourne by Mark Rattenbury
