Paul Nash in 1924, photographed by Lance Sieveking
“Ten years ago I was teaching design at the Royal College of Art. I
was fortunate in being there during an outbreak of talent, and can
remember at least eight men and women who have made names for themselves
since then in a variety of different directions: in Painting, Edward
Burra; Applied Design, Edward Bawden, Barnett Freedman, and Eric
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An Outbreak of Talent: the Film!
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Rethinking Civil Society
One of the things I picked up from Peggy Angus when researching her life and work was her belief that art should be useful. She was interested in the subject of patronage, perceiving that artists at different periods in history have been supported by particular groups - the Catholic church, landowners, 19th century industrialists. Looking at art history in this way you realise that the
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Walking Madonna by Elizabeth Frink... seen here at Salisbury cathedral - look out for her @ferensartgallery this summer! @ingramcollectionuk #reflectionexhibition
A post shared by James Russell (@jamesrussell66) on Jul 5, 2019 at 7:14am PDT
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Possibly the lightest artwork in #reflectionexhibition @ferensartgallery - and another favourite: Fun Bag by @sinforvictory
A post shared by James Russell (@jamesrussell66) on Aug 15, 2019 at 1:01pm PDT
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'Reflection' gets FOUR STARS in The Observer!
John Armstrong, Study for The City, 1952 (Ingram Collection)
After two years of planning and a hectic week hanging 130 assorted paintings, sculptures, works on paper, etc, my exhibition 'Reflection' opened at Ferens Art Gallery, Hull, on Saturday. Subtitled 'British Art in an Age of Change' it brings together 20th and 21st century artworks from the Ingram Collection and the Ferens permanent
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Eric Ravilious: Downland Man
Eric Ravilious, The Vale of the White Horse, 1939
Since researching 'Ravilious in Pictures: Sussex and the Downs' a dozen years ago I've been wanting to curate an exhibition devoted to the artist and the landscape he studied from boyhood. And now I've been given my chance.
'Eric Ravilious: Downland Man' will open at the Wiltshire Museum, Devizes, in the autumn of 2020 and we have some
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Seaside Modern: Art & Life on the Beach
Coming to Hastings this summer, my new exhibition explores an intriguing cultural phenomenon. In the first half of the 20th century, and particularly between the wars, the British seaside was both popular and fashionable. The young and sophisticated stripped off layers of Victorian prudery and cavorted on the sand in the latest daring swimwear. Artists hit the beach in search of new
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New Lectures!
Given that the world has temporarily ground to a halt I'm doing my best to ignore the present and focus on the future. I feel the greatest sadness for all the artists and curators whose exhibitions have been cancelled or can only be experienced via the internet, and I fear for the survival of institutions I have worked with over the years. People who work in the non-commercial art world tend
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Easy Listening! Eric Ravilious: The Art of Looking
With all lectures cancelled for the foreseeable future, I thought I'd do something different and make a series of podcasts. Episode one is called Eric Ravilious: The Art of Looking:
Relevant images are posted below...
Eric Ravilious, Scrubbing Brush and Soap, 1915
Eric Ravilious, Cliffs in March, 1939 (lost)
Eric Ravilious, The Wilmington Giant, 1939
Eric Ravilious, The
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Easy Listening! The Improbable Adventures of Edward Bawden
Welcome to my second podcast, made despite the sonic difficulties caused by sharing a house with a lively dog (woofing) and various humans aged 17 to... never mind (laughter, shrieks, sounds of conflict), and by living in the middle of a city. It's a lot quieter than normal, but not as quiet as a recording studio. Obviously. Anyway, if you would like to have a listen to 'The Improbable
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Easy Listening! Peggy Angus: Mother of Invention
James Russell · Peggy Angus: Mother of Invention
We all need to be a bit flexible in our thinking these days, as we try to figure out what to do and how to get paid for it. Among a host of other subjects, Peggy Angus thought about patronage a lot during her long and productive life. She had some interesting ideas, and she put them into practice. I hope you enjoy listening, and I've attached a
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Easy Listening! Dear Old Thomas and Lucky Paul
James Russell · Paul Nash & Edward Thomas: Dear Old Thomas and Lucky Paul
I know we're not supposed to be thinking about World War One any more but I've never been very good at doing things at the right time... Actually I wrote a version of this podcast a few years ago as the first chapter of a proposed book. No, the book never did get written, but it's been fun revisiting this story... Happy
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Eric Ravilious: Newt Pond
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In the papers this weekend... Eric Ravilious, ‘Newt Pond’ 1932 - I wrote a note on this watercolour for @christiesinc: This beautifully preserved watercolour was one of those shown by Eric Ravilious in November 1933, in his inaugural one-man exhibition at the Zwemmer Gallery on Charing Cross Road, London. Listed as
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Gertrude Hermes features in 'Scene Through Wood' at the Ashmolean
View this post on Instagram Gertrude Hermes, Undercurrents (1938) - timely then and relevant now... another of the fabulous wood engravings on show @ashmoleanmuseum in the exhibition #scenethroughwood, curated by @anne_desmet . . #woodengraving #gertrudehermes #20thcenturyart #modernbritishart @societyofwoodengravers #swe100 @royalacademyarts A post shared by James Russell (@
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Laura Knight painting Eileen Mayo (1927)
This film of Laura Knight painting model Eileen Mayo was made by British Pathe in 1927, not long after Knight had been elected an Associate of the Royal Academy. I love how the charcoal drawing transforms miraculously into the almost-finished oil. Another painting of Mayo hangs on the wall among numerous other portraits. Mayo posed for other artists, notably Dod Procter, and was also an artist in
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Festive Felicitations!!!
Covid Christmas. Hmmm. It doesn’t sound especially jolly, does it? Although, strangely, Christmas Corona almost does. Anyway… at the time of writing nobody has told us just how festive our festive season is going to be this year, but it doesn’t look like too many people will be photocopying their hindquarters at the office party, or bellowing Good King Wenceslas in the street, or sharing a
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Lower Wings of Tyger Moth
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My Emily Sutton interview for Uppercase
UPPERCASE 48 from uppercasemag on Vimeo.A little while ago I had the great pleasure of interviewing Emily Sutton about the series of Alphabet prints she has been making with Dan Bugg of Penfold Press over the past decade. I'm not sure how Emily manages to work as hard as she does while still retaining her sense of humour and joie de vivre, but every one of the prints - from A is for Accordian to
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A Brighter February with Eric Ravilious!
Greetings! With everything being so grim at the moment I thought I would put together a short series of lectures on Eric Ravilious. These will take the form of three live webinars, which will then be available as recordings to ticket holders who can't make the actual event. I gave my first lecture on Ravilious in 2008 to coincide with the publication of The Story of High Street (Mainstone Press)
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Gazing at the sea...
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