The Elmhirst Heritage Centre (EHC) on the Dartington Estate is set to close to visitors on Thursday, October 1.

It got off to a good start but unfortunately interest in tours and exhibitions in the centre declined significantly in the first year with no sign of things improving.

The centre opened in 2025 as part of the celebrations for the centenary of the Elmhurst family’s purchase and development of the Dartington Estate.

The EHC is in the former private residence of Dartington founders Dorothy and Leonard Elmhirst, featuring period-refurbished 1960s rooms, core Modern British and American paintings/ceramics, and changing temporary exhibitions.

A spokesperson said: “The Centre’s failure to thrive is no reflection on the efforts of its staff and the many volunteers who have assisted with tours and other aspects of its operation in the last year.

“A number of dedicated marketing campaigns, speaker events and outreach initiatives beyond Dartington had been pursued by that team to raise awareness and maximise appeal.

“The EHC’s very high-quality visitor experience appears to be far more ‘niche’ than ever envisaged.”

Although the Trust would not reveal how much had been invested into the centre, they did say it ‘comfortably exceeded six figures’ with the largest amount coming from a donation from the Howe Green Trust.

The project was delivered with advice and support from the Jenna Burlingham Gallery group.

The Trust is to look at much smaller venue options on the estate for the Elmhirst Heritage Centre collections.

There is a Temporary Exhibition running called ‘Dorothy’s Japan 1909’.

When she was just 22, Dorothy Elmhirst toured Japan for two months as part of a world tour and collected a stunning set of over 300 hand-coloured photographs.

These beautiful images depict romanticised visions of a Japanese past, but represented a new art form created to meet the rising tourist trade at the turn of the century.