A new exhibition of the drawings by one of the most significant British artists of the 20th century is to be shown at The Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery this December.
The exhibition will include close to 40 drawings by the artist Wilhelmina Barns-Graham (1912 – 2004), many of which have rarely been exhibited. Curated for the Pier Arts Centre and the Barns-Graham Charitable Trust, from the Trust’s collection, by the writer and critic Mel Gooding, the exhibition is a major survey of drawings produced by the artist between 1947 and 1993. The exhibition runs from 8 December 2009 until 27 February 2010.
Black Silence 1, Maquez (Yellow), by Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, 1990, gouache on paper (BGT 935) © The Barns-Graham Charitable Trust
“That Wilhelmina Barns-Graham was a painter and printmaker of the first rank in post-war British art is increasingly recognised” writes Mel Gooding. “This exhibition demonstrates her achievement as one of the finest landscape draughtsmen of her generation. Her drawings have an analytic dynamism and diverse stylistic verve that is utterly original and distinctive.”
Wilhelmina Barns-Graham was born St Andrews in 1912 and studied painting at Edinburgh College of Art from 1931-1937. She became one of the central figures in the St Ives Group, arriving in St Ives in 1940. Inheriting a house by St Andrews in 1960 she was to divide her time between the two coastal communities until her death in St Andrews in January 2004.
Wilhelmina Barns-Graham was a natural draughtsman. Her drawings offer considerable insight into her way of thinking and the artist’s perception of the world around her. Many of the drawings in the exhibition were done while on her travels in Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Orkney. They reveal an enquiring and analytical mind and a consistent exploration of the structure of landscape, seen and unseen. Included in the exhibition is a collection of tightly knit line drawings that explore the mass and swell of the sea.
The Barns-Graham Charitable Trust was established in 1987 by Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, to secure her life’s work for future generations. Chairman of the Trust, Geoffrey Bertram, said of the exhibition, “Wilhelmina Barns-Graham’s drawings have not been widely seen, and, until now, there has never been an extensive exhibition of drawings on this scale. Drawings make up an important element of Barns-Graham’s work, but because they are not usually directly related to her paintings, they have been rather overlooked.”
The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery is an accredited art museum at the heart of the University of Leeds campus, recently refurbished in 2008 with funds from the Audrey & Stanley Burton Charitable Trust. The Gallery offers both a programme of temporary exhibitions and a display of selected treasures from the University Art Collection in its main gallery. An Education Room houses the University’s collection of drawings and works on paper, while also offering space for private study, research and teaching. “Wilhelmina Barns-Graham taught at the Leeds School of Art from 1956 to 1957 and so it’s great to have her work back in the city”, said Layla Bloom, Exhibitions Officer at the Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery.
Neil Firth, the Director of the Pier Arts Centre noted, “The exhibition of drawings by Wilhelmina Barns-Graham provides a new perspective on this important artist’s work and we are delighted to have this opportunity to bring her work to a wider audience.”
The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, Parkinson Building, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT Tel: +44 (0)113 3432778
www.leeds.ac.uk/gallery
