Tony Hart Centenary

11 October - 8 November 2025

This retrospective centenary exhibition of work by the much-loved TV artist Tony Hart, who was born in Maidstone on 15 October 1925, was carefully selected by his daughter, Carolyn Ross.

Everyone who watched Vision On, Take Hart or Hart Beat will know that Tony Hart could make a picture out of anything – corrugated cardboard, sand, string, vegetables, inkblot - the list is endless!  Some of these artworks were on show in the exhibition, alongside his cartoon characters which undoubtedly made him a household name.

Something that may come as more of a surprise, is that Tony Hart was also a superb portrait artist. Capturing people in a carefully arranged pose or quickly sketching someone who was unaware they were being watched, he had the ability to produce wonderful atmospheric artworks developed from simple pencil sketches, and the exhibition featured some of these portraits.

Over 3,000 people visited this exhibition.