my own backyard

In the last year I have been travelling to as many European countries as possible. I really make an effort to get out of Brighton to see as much as I can while I'm here. 
But it's hard for me to remember to explore what's in my own backyard! 
I didn't know until recently that only about half an hours drive from Brighton is the farm where photographer Lee Miller and her surrealist painter husband Roland Penrose lived for many years. 
I couldn't believe it when I found out! I don't remember that detail when studying her at university, but why would I, I hardly knew where Brighton was let alone the Sussex countryside. 
Lee Miller was one of the first photographers I was really interested in - her life story was so varied - starting off as a model in front of the camera, then turning photography student with Man Ray as her tutor, which was followed by a stint photographing for Vogue and other magazines and ending up as a war photographer capturing the atrocious scenes in Germany at the end of World War 2. 
My friend Ant (who is a talented illustrator, check out his work here) and I drove out to check out the farm, a couple of Sundays ago. You can do tours of the farmhouse (there is also a great sculpture garden) where they lived together and hosted many artists of the time including Picasso, Many Ray, Henry Moore, Dorothea Tanning and Max Ernst. 
The tour gave me a sense of how they lived. My favourite room was the kitchen - I could really imagine Lee cooking for her friends while they sat in the kitchen keeping her company. 
I'm even more motivated to see more of the Sussex countryside now, especially while the autumn colours are so vivid. 
All the information for Farley Farm is here if you are keen to check it out!