The Art of the Dolls' House

Booking is now open for our 2025 annual symposium, led by Dr Tessa Murdoch, which will examine the history of dolls' houses across Europe and Britain. An international roster of speakers will celebrate dolls' houses from the earliest surviving European examples preserved in the Netherlands and Nuremberg, to a developing tradition in England, where two beautifully furnished ‘baby houses' treasured by Huguenot heiresses are today cared for by the National Trust.

The dolls' house belonging to Petronella de la Court in seventeenth-century Utrecht complemented her contemporary art collection, while architect-designed Queen Mary’s Dolls' House has just celebrated its centenary. The V&A's collection and the installation of dolls' houses at the Young V&A by Rachel Whiteread have contributed to the museum's enviable position as 2024 Museum of the Year. The symposium will revisit these tiny houses and explore their legacy and creative inspiration as educational tools, which have opened the eyes of successive generations to the fascination of miniature worlds.

Speakers include: Dr Heike Zech (Deputy Director, Germanisches Museum, Nuremberg), Dr Sara van Dijk (Curator of Textiles, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam), Kathryn Jones (Senior Curator of Decorative Arts, Royal Collection Trust), Natalie Dubois (Curator of Applied Art and Design, Centraal Museum, Utrecht), William Newton (Curator at Young V&A), Ben Taggart (model maker of historic properties) and Simon McCormack (Property Curator, Nostell Priory, National Trust).

The symposium will be led by Dr Tessa Murdoch and co-chaired on the day by Dr Megan Wheeler (Assistant National Curator - Furniture, National Trust).

During conference breaks there will be a demonstration of miniature furniture making by Terence Facey & Study Session with Kirstin Kennedy V&A Curator (Metalwork 1450-1900) looking at silver toys. These are bookable in advance. 

There will be an opportunity for delegates to visit the exhibition of Sarah Lethieullier’s 1730s Dolls' House at the Huguenot Museum, Rochester, Kent on Friday, 21 March 2025.

The full Programme and Tickets for the Symposium are now available on Eventbrite please click here

The Palladian-style dolls' house at Uppark, West Sussex  |  ©National Trust Images/Nadia Mackenzie