Chatsworth House, a Grade I listed estate set within a 1,822-acre park, is home to the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire and has remained in the Cavendish family since 1549. It is a stunning property with amazingly beautiful gardens and is easily reachable from London and Scotland!

It houses one of Europe’s most important private art collections and is worth a day of visit. In the 1950s, Deborah “Debo” Mitford, the 11th Duchess, laid the foundations for its evolution into a vibrant hub for art and design. Today, Chatsworth hosts an ambitious programme of exhibitions across both its historic interiors and expansive grounds. The shop is equally nice. The interiors have been an inspiration for Alessandro Michele who featured replications of the floral paintings on suits, bags and shoes. He listed Chatsworth in the Gucci guide when he was at the helm of the fashion house, the only location in England with Assouline’s bookstore in London. His presence lingers at Chatsworth in a beautiful Gucci dress he designed, adorned with delicate textile bees along the hem.

The collection spans over 4,000 years, from ancient Roman and Egyptian antiquities to works by Rembrandt, Reynolds, and Veronese, as well as modern and contemporary artists such as Lucian Freud, Rembrandt, David Nash, and Edmund de Waal. Notable highlights include Leonardo da Vinci’s Leda and the Swan (c. 1503–1507), Canaletto’s Venetian landscapes, and the diamond-encrusted Devonshire tiara (1865) among more important works.

Some people come for another reason: Chatsworth House was the location used in the 2005 film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice for the home of Mr. Darcy, Pemberley and featuring Keira Knightley. In the film, the house is known for its stunning grounds, particularly the Sculpture Gallery where Elizabeth Bennet famously sees a bust of Mr. Darcy (now on view permanently there).

The current art exhibition at Chatsworth is “The Gorgeous Nothings: Flowers at Chatsworth” and is running until October 5, 2025. This exhibition explores the theme of flowers through a diverse collection of historical and contemporary art, including works from the Devonshire Collections and key loans from national and international museums – including artists Frank Bowling, Chris Ofili, Jonas Mekas, Dorothea Tanning and Emma Tennant among other luminaries. The exhibition also features new artist commissions which always bring the space to new heights.

Allegra Pesenti, Curator of The Gorgeous Nothings: Flowers at Chatsworth said: “The eclectic charge of the installations in this exhibition voices the urgency of the environmental condition in the world today, but also the resilience and persistence of nature. Each flower represented here is associated with deep-rooted myths and symbolisms. Individually, they may be considered gorgeous nothings, but together, they manifest life and endurance against all odds.”

Gathering, the act of collecting from diverse sources , is both a method of preservation and a means of survival. This theme runs through the history of Chatsworth and the Devonshire Collections, and informs the selection of artists and works in this remarkable exhibition, juxtaposing contemporary art and the dramatic architecture of the property.

Scientific specimens gathered in the past, such as flower fossils and minerals collected by Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, and the 400+ species of British algae documented by Anna Atkins in the 1840s, resonate visually with works by contemporary artists including Simryn Gill, Elliott Hundley, Liza Lou, Alessandro Piangiamore, and Elias Sime.

Collage and assemblage are central to the show. The layered surfaces and found materials in Frank Bowling’s paintings and the intricate botanical clay elements in Chiara Camoni’s sculpted female figure illustrate how gathering remains a vital artistic strategy today. The exhibition is a must-see and is supported by Sotheby’s, who helped sourced the works on view and the curation.

Meanwhile in London, Sotheby’s features a presentation dedicated to “The Gorgeous Nothings: Flowers at Chatsworth Chatsworth” at its headquarters with a selection of highlights.

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Image: Bailey-Cooper Photography / Alamy  and Gucci dress by Alessandro Michele.