Eric Ravilious - Chalk and Ice

[ardcarp]

The Sunday Feature (R3 6.45pm) introduced me to this designer and artist (latterly a War artist, d.1942) of whom I was unaware. A pity there's no pictures on radio...though there are just four on the website.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006tnwp

(You have to click on the one of his shown under Galleries, and you get 3 more.)

[Don Petter]

There is a dedicated Ravilious Room in the Towner Gallery in Eastbourne.

[mercia]

I was unaware of the Saffron Walden collection. Dulwich have a major exhibition April-August

http://www.dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk/whats-on/exhibitions/2015/april/ravilious/

Towner have examples of his designs for Wedgwood (at least they did when I visited)

[clive heath]

I've long been a fan of Ravilious especially the one of the Westbury White Horse seen from a railway carriage on God's Own Railway. Growing up on the edge of Wiltshire Chalk as I did his downland paintings are very evocative. After seeing the Towner show we found out that this book was available

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Eric-Ravilious-Story-High-Street/dp/0955277728

[french frank]

I've long been a fan of Ravilious especially the one of the Westbury White Horse seen from a railway carriage on God's Own Railway. Growing up on the edge of Wiltshire Chalk as I did his downland paintings are very evocative. After seeing the Towner show we found out that this book was available

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Eric-Ravilio.../dp/0955277728

Very much the same school as the Nash brothers who had an exhibition at the RWA earlier this year (NB God's Wonderful Railway?)

[Alain Maréchal]

I strongly recommend a visit to the Towner Gallery, in a splendid modern building next door to the Congress Theatre. If it were known as "Tate Eastbourne" it would be thronged with visitors. There are some surprises, quite apart from the Ravilious.

[clive heath]

Yes, it came to me a few moments ago while shaving, God's Wonderful Railway of course, ff, amounts to the same thing really and I've even had a ride in the cab on a GWR 0-6-0 pannier tank so I should know!

The BBC featured Bomberg, Sickert and Nash as war artists recently but no Eric.

[gradus]

Ravilious appeals to me greatly (ditto the Nashes and all that English school of the last century) and there are some excellent reproductions of his work in various books - about the closest I'll ever get to his work given the sky-high prices it now commands. A recently discovered original went for well into six figures recently.

[verismissimo]

I strongly recommend a visit to the Towner Gallery, in a splendid modern building next door to the Congress Theatre. If it were known as "Tate Eastbourne" it would be thronged with visitors. There are some surprises, quite apart from the Ravilious.

No, no, sir. It's a blot. Inside and out. And when we were there recently, the gallery was given over to two temporary exhibitions, one of which could be taken in in 10 seconds, although it occupied a whole floor. The only sign of the permanent collection was the small room with a few of their Raviliouses.

If I'd donated a work to them in the past century or so, I'd be asking for it back. They have a wonderful collection locked up somewhere below ground level.

[Stunsworth]

His son James was a superb photographer, well worth checking out if you're not familiar with his work.

Incidentally there's a mural by the father in the pavilion of Colwyn Bay pier. Alas it's long been lost - covered over - and the pier is now in a very sorry state and closed to the public.

[mercia]

Incidentally there's a mural by the father in the pavilion of Colwyn Bay pier. Alas it's long been lost - covered over - and the pier is now in a very sorry state and closed to the public.

that has reminded me that there was also a lost mural at the Midland Hotel, Morecambe

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-24879792

oh well, we do have a photo of the Colwyn mural

http://www.victoriapier.co.uk/ravilious.php

[Alain Maréchal]

No, no, sir. It's a blot. Inside and out. And when we were there recently, the gallery was given over to two temporary exhibitions, one of which could be taken in in 10 seconds, although it occupied a whole floor. The only sign of the permanent collection was the small room with a few of their Raviliouses.

If I'd donated a work to them in the past century or so, I'd be asking for it back. They have a wonderful collection locked up somewhere below ground level.

In whch case it has changed, inside and out, since my last visit two years ago. I visited several times from its opening, the permanent collection rotated in a large first floor area, with Ravilious, Mockford and Kit Wood having pride of place. I thought the curving building hinted at the white cliffs of Beachy Head, but it was a pity it was attached to the Congress Theatre, a fine freestanding building itself (Royal Festival Hall outside and Oostende Kursaal inside), which seemed to have been poorly maintained and under scaffolding for many years. It was certainly a surprise to find a modern building among Eastbourne's conventional brick and stucco.

The permanent collection is in sliding stacks, and viewable on request (or was).

Update: I note that Mathew Rowe left as Director at the end of 2012, which may explain the changes.

Further Update from the website:
Towner became a Charitable Trust on 1 July 2014 and was delighted to welcome nine Trustees onto our new board, chaired by David Dimbleby:

Henry Wyndham (Chair, Sothebys)
Colin McKenzie (Director, House of Illustration)
Dinah Casson (Architect and Partner, Casson Mann)
Hillary Bauer (Head, Cultural Property DCMS, 1999-2012)
Gyr King (Founding Director, King and McGaw)
Mark Moorton (Director, HR, Specsavers)
Tim Ashdown (Partner, DMH Stallard)
Julian Sutherland Beatson (Artist)
John Madell (Marketing and Finance)

Spot the business input.

[french frank]

The Radio 3 Facebook page (and it really has become a million times better in recent weeks) obtained permission from the Fry Art Gallery to post four more pictures, in addition to the ones on the webpage. Scroll down a couple of items and click on the pictures. (I love the camp bed!) :-)

[Alain Maréchal]

Thank you ff for drawing attention to that (and to the facebook page, I wasn't even aware it existed, but unawareness is my default state. Would it not be simpler for the BBC just to put all these things on the website?). I have seen at least two of those on a wall, and my memory is prompting me with recollection of an "Aspects of Landscape" exhibiton (or something similar) so they must have been to the Towner some years ago. I have certainly never been to Saffron Walden.

(Tagential remark - according to that page "The John Ireland revival is long overdue". So whose music have I been listening to all these years? Its the Paul Gilson revival that is long overdue.

[agingjb]

Ravilious was the artist of the woodcut that used, in better times, to be on the front cover of Wisden.