Patrick Heron, Ultramarine, Cinnamon and Dull Yellow, 1960. © Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery, London
Scarborough Art Gallery is the final location for an Arts Council touring exhibition that reveals some of the most innovative and influential artists who have lived and worked in St Ives.
Spotlight on St Ives runs from September 15 until November 4 2007 and features some of the best-known names to emerge from the St Ives School over the last century.
A vibrant artist scene has thrived in St Ives for more than 120 years with artists from across the world drawn by the ambience of the small seaside town in the far west of Cornwall.
John Tunnard, Cornwall, 1942. Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery, London
The remarkable light and the newly discovered penchant for painting outside (en plein) initially inspired late Victorian landscape and marine artists such as Whistler and Sickert who arrived via the newly built Great Western railway.
A steady stream slowly resulted in the simple fishing town becoming a Mecca for those in search of perfect conditions for outdoor painting.
However, it wasn’t until the post-war period that a group of painters and sculptors really established the St Ives School.
Ben Nicholson first visited Cornwall in 1928 with Christopher Wood after being drawn to the bold directness in the paintings of the Cornish mariner and painter Alfred Wallis. In 1939, just before the outbreak of war, he returned there with Barbara Hepworth.
Christopher Wood, Boat at Concarneau, 1930. Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery, London
It was during this time that he established an important artistic community attracting a number of younger artists drawn to what soon became known as the ‘St Ives School’.
These included the abstract painter Sir Terry Frost and the sculptor Denis Mitchell who arrived to work as assistants to Barbara Hepworth. Both are featured in the exhibition.
Other artists represented include some of the most famous names associated with St Ives and as well as Nicholson and Hepworth, include Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Naum Gabo, Patrick Heron Roger Hilton and Peter Lanyon.
Peter Lanyon, Soaring Flight, 1960. Arts Council Collection, Hayward Gallery, London
As all of them were drawn by the natural beauty of the coastal town it is appropriate that the exhibition should finish its tour in Scarborough, a town with similar charms and Spotlight on St Ives' only seaside destination.
