Stanley Spencer: Visionary Painter of the Natural World
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THE MONTH OF DECEMBER: FETCHING HOLLY 1926 Sir Stanley Spencer (1891 – 1959) P2751 © Estate of Stanley Spencer. All Rights Reserved 2023 / Bridgeman Images
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PORT GLASGOW CEMETERY 1947 Sir Stanley Spencer (1891 – 1959) P61 © Estate of Stanley Spencer. All Rights Reserved 2023 / Bridgeman Images
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BLUEBELLS, CORNFLOWERS AND RHODODENDRONS 1945 Sir Stanley Spencer (1891 – 1959) P173 © Estate of Stanley Spencer. All Rights Reserved 2023 / Bridgeman Images
If Stanley Spencer’s beloved home village of Cookham was a ‘village in heaven’, this exhibition certainly seems to have all the qualities of an ‘exhibition in heaven’. It is resonant with glorious depictions of the natural world by the great 20th century painter, whose reputation continues to soar.
The works include exquisitely executed flower paintings, garden vistas and landscapes, forming breathtaking panoramas along the walls, interspersed by figurative and spiritual scenes set against further ‘natural world’ backdrops.
The exhibition makes a wonderful highlight for a visit to Cookham, where Spencer lived and worked for most of his life.
