‘Wish You Were Here!’ by Caro Lester

Artist & designer Caro Lester’s print and illustration work is vibrant, graphic and contemporary, inspired by the beautiful colours and light of Dorset’s coast and gardens. Her practice is centred around sketchbook work, drawing at the beach to document the landscape, plants, buildings, boats and people at work and leisure year round. She uses a wide variety of mixed media and enjoys incorporating found collage materials, printed ephemera and text fragments. Caro then works with both traditional print and digital design techniques in the studio to produce her illustrations, layering drawings and selecting elements to create her images.  Whilst every coastal town, beach and cove is different, she aims to capture the essence of what a day at the beach can feel like, celebrating our strong seaside traditions with a fresh approach.

Caro completed an Art Foundation course at Shelley Park, which was followed (several years later) by a Distinction in Graphic Design & Multimedia, HND.  She is a member of Dorset Visual Arts and Dorset Colourists. Caro was delighted to have a Garden Sketchbook drawing selected for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition this year.

Wish You Were Here! will be running in our Rotunda Gallery from 18th September 2026 – 29th November. For visiting information please see our Plan your Visit page. This exhibition is FREE with admission.