Porthmeor Studios in St Ives dates back to the early 1800s, and for its first 100 years it was at the centre of the pilchard industry. The artists started to arrive in the 1880s, and built their studios on top of the fishermen's cellars. Since then, Porthmeor has provided workspace for several internationally important artists, including Ben Nicholson and Patrick Heron.

The building still provides workspace for fishermen, artists and the St Ives School of Painting, and really defines the history of St Ives. It has recently been Grade II listed, and urgently needs major renovation works.

Porthmeor has been accepted onto the Arts Lottery Capital programme, and was provisionally allocated £1.2 million towards the estimated total costs of £3 million. The Trust is urgently seeking additional funding for the project, and anticipates that the majority will come from other public sources.