Save Sven's Tower

We need your voice

The following relates to the sad and dilapidated condition of Sven Berlin's former home and studio The Tower, in St. Ives, Cornwall. (Pictured above left and as it was in 2015.) Having spoken to the St. Ives Town Council, we understand enquiries are being made, but perhaps more voices of concern would help this building survive as a recognition and commemoration of Sven’s memorable and influential time in St. Ives.  More details are below…. 

"Recent pilgrims to Sven Berlin’s studio The Tower in St. Ives, Cornwall  have discovered it in an increasingly dilapidated state, with the roof also in disrepair. Gone is the red door and the iron mask Sven hung over the lintel, the once sparkling white walls are blackened and peeling and littered with commercial signs. We would love you to write to St. Ives Town Council to encourage them to bring The Tower back to life.

This is why. When Sven Berlin returned to St. Ives in 1945, traumatised by his wartime experiences, this simple building, The Tower as it became known, served as his refuge and studio. Outside on the stone platform the powerful figure of Sven would be seen carving marble and stone, iconically photographed by casual visitors and famous photographers alike. 

Here too Sven would hold court, welcoming the famous artists of the day many of them key figures today - Wilhelmina Barns Graham, Barbara Hepworth, Augustus John, Ben Nicholson, John Minton, Denis Mitchell, Hyman Segal, Peter Lanyon, John Wells, Bryan Wynter, among others and the writers - the poets W S Graham and Arthur Caddick, the printer Guido Morris, Robert Graves, Denys Val Baker, as well as the potter Bernard Leach. 

From here Sven would gather together his paintings, drawings and sculpture to take part in the ground-breaking art exhibitions of the Crypt Group and at George Downing’s bookshop in the town.

It was here too that Sven met the beautiful Jacqueline Moran, his local girlfriend for a while, and it was outside The Tower that Juanita, his second wife would park her showman’s wagon. From The Tower Sven rescued an inebriated David Haughton (artist) from the outcrop of Mermaid Rock, drawing him as the ‘Sleeping Man’ which would become a Carrera marble sculpture.

With this significant artistic and literary history, we would hope that with the help of St. Ives Town Council, the building can be saved, renovated and restored, and that the story of Sven Berlin and his connections with the heritage of St. Ives can be told." 

Please if you would like to help save Sven’s Tower write to or email: 

louise.dwelly@stives-tc.gov.uk

Louise Dwelly, Town Clerk, St Ives Town Council, The Guildhall, Street An Pol,

St Ives, Cornwall, TR26 2DS