PASSPORTS: GREAT EARLY BUYS FROM THE BRITISH COUNCIL COLLECTION
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FOLK DANCE 1938 William Roberts (1895 – 1980) P2626 © copyright The Artist's Estate
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GIRL WITH ROSES 1947/48 Lucian Freud (1922 – 2011) P79 © Lucian Freud Archive, 2014. All Rights Reserved. Bridgeman Art Library
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THORN TREES 1945 Graham Sutherland (1903 – 1980) P74 © The Artist's Estate
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COCK AND BULL 2001 Gary Webb (1973 – ) P7440 © The Artist
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VIEW OF DALSTON JUNCTION 1974 Leon Kossoff (1926 – ) P3069 © The Artist
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THE CHANT OF BLUE 1983 Anish Kapoor (1954 – ) P4362 © Anish Kapoor. All Rights Reserved, DACS 2015.
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Guggenheim (black) 1970 Richard Hamilton (1922 – 2011) P1538 © R. Hamilton. All Rights Reserved, DACS 2018.
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1935 (WHITE RELIEF) 1935 Ben Nicholson (1894 – 1982) P31 © Angela Verren Taunt 2015. All rights reserved, DACS
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VIEW INSIDE A CAVE 1965 Patrick Caulfield (1936 – 2005) P1241 © The Estate of Patrick Caulfield. All rights reserved, DACS 2023.
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COMPOSITION 1914/15 Frederick Etchells (1886 – 1973) P188 © The Estate of Frederick Etchells. All rights reserved. DACS 2023.
Girl with Roses, 1947-48, is an iconic early painting by Lucian Freud, a psychologically charged portrait of the artist’s first wife Kitty. Her intense expression communicates a startling immediacy, amplified by the almost palpable lines of her sweater and the velvety folds of her skirt.
Recognised as a masterpiece of Freud’s early career, the painting is one among over 8000 works in the British Council Collection, one of the most impressive public collections of 20th century British art in the world. It is presented here among other key works drawn from the Collection, in the first of a series of exhibitions oganised over the next year, on the occasion of the British Council’s 75th Anniversary
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Focusing on Great Early Buys the exhibition also includes key works by Paul Nash and Ben Nicholson; rare early carvings by Henry Moore; Cataract 3, one of Bridget Riley’s first major paintings in colour; and later works by a younger generation of artists such as Peter Doig, Sarah Lucas and Chris Ofili. Selected by the artist Michael Craig-Martin, the display focuses on one of the Collection’s great strengths - buying from artists at early stages in their careers.
Following on throughout 2009, three further guest curators will present displays drawn from the Collection. A fifth display in Spring 2010 will result from an international competition open to curators worldwide.
Collection Artist(s)
- Frank Auerbach
- Patrick Caulfield
- Michael Craig-Martin
- Martin Creed
- Peter Doig
- Frederick Etchells
- Lucian Freud
- Anya Gallaccio
- Gilbert & George
- Richard Hamilton
- Damien Hirst
- David Hockney
- Anish Kapoor
- Leon Kossoff
- Sarah Lucas
- Henry Moore
- Paul Nash
- Ben Nicholson
- Chris Ofili
- Bridget Riley
- William Roberts
- Graham Sutherland
- William Tucker
- Gary Webb
Glossary
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Painting
Work of art made with paint on a surface. Often the surface, also called a support, is a tightly stretched piece of canvas, paper or a wooden panel. Painting involves a wide range of techniques and materials, along with the artist's intellectual concerns effecting the content of a work.