THE Winchester School of Art has returned to the Guildhall.

In the autumn of last year, Southampton University made the decision to expand its teaching spaces for the Winchester School of Art into the Guildhall, back where the school previously stood.

A Southampton University spokesman said: “WSA needed more teaching space and it was a great opportunity for us to be back in some of the space we had historically occupied when the School of Art was newly created, hence our name already above the door of the building.

“It is great to be in the heart of Winchester with students being able to explore the historic city and feel a part of the community.”

The Winchester School of Art was founded in 1870 and was initially located at the Bishop’s Palace. However, in 1873 the Housemaster at Winchester College, Frederick Morshead, secured funding to build an art school attached to the Guildhall. 

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In 1876 construction of the School was completed, which they used for approximately 60 years. Due to them outgrowing the space and the Guildhall being used during the Second World War, they had to move elsewhere and eventually built a new site on Park Avenue in 1966.

Currently, most of the teaching in the space is for fashion students, however, the university spokesman said: “We don’t rule out the space being timetabled for other groups at some point.

“We are exploring several options and will share any plans with our neighbours and friends in the city once they are developed.”