Land, Sea and Sky: Paul Nash in Oxford, 11 May - 9 June 2024, Pembroke College JCR Art Gallery, Oxford

A new exhibition about Paul Nash and his life and work in Oxford.

Paul Nash and his wife Margaret moved to Oxford just before World War Two. Land, Sea and Sky: Paul Nash in Oxford explores the work Nash made during his life in the city, with subjects ranging from the Wittenham Clumps to his work as an official artist for the Air Ministry.

With loans from the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford colleges and private collections, the exhibition features many paintings, drawings and photographs that have never been exhibited before. A programme of supporting events includes talks with Will Gompertz, Aida Hozić, artist Dave McKean, a curatorial panel discussion, and a chance to watch the 1944 documentary Out of Chaos, featuring Paul Nash. Booking for these events is recommended.

The exhibition is a collaboration with Oxford Festival of the Arts and a team of curators, writers and art historians. Open on Thursdays and Fridays from 4pm - 7pm, and Saturdays and Sundays from 11am - 4pm. Admission free.

Pembroke College JCR Art Gallery, 5 Brewer Street, Oxford, OX1 1QN

Paul Nash and the Wittenham Clumps Walk, Saturday 9 September 2023, 9.45 am

Join Christopher Baines on a guided walk around the Wittenham Clumps, exploring Nash's fascination with this landscape and places where he worked.

The morning begins with an illustrated talk, followed by a walk that explores both wooded hills of the Clumps and spectacular views of the surrounding countryside. September was the month when the Nash family visited the Wittenham Clumps on holidays before the First World War, so the landscape will look much as it did when discovered by Paul Nash and his artist brother, John.

If you would like details of future walks, or would like to arrange a walk for your own group, please email: info@nashclumps.org

Walk details: Here

Extraordinary Everyday: The Art and Design of Eric Ravilious, The Arc, Winchester, 18 February - 15 May 2022

Eric Ravilious (1903-1942) was one of Paul Nash’s pupils at the Royal College of Art in the 1920s and went on to achieve great success before his early death at the age of 39. Extraordinary Everyday: The Art and Design of Eric Ravilious marks 80 years since his death and features his wood engravings, watercolours, books, ceramics and lithographs. The exhibition is curated by James Russell, curator of the 2015 Ravilious exhibition at Dulwich Picture Gallery, and author of the Mainstone Press's excellent series of Ravilious books.

John Nash Exhibition: The Landscape of Love and Solace, Towner Eastbourne, 18 May - 26 September 2021 and Compton Verney Art Gallery, 23 October 2021 - 2 January 2022

In a career spanning more than seven decades, John Nash produced work across a range of mediums, from iconic oil paintings to accomplished wood engravings, line-drawings, lithographs and watercolours. Often overshadowed by his brother and fellow artist Paul Nash, John Nash has not been the subject of a major exhibition for over 50 years.

John Nash: The Landscape of Love and Solace will explore the artist’s life and work within the history of the 20th century, and his key relationships with Dora Carrington and Christine Kuhlenthal. Works will also be presented from friends and peers including Edward Bawden, Peter Coker, Charles Ginner, Spencer Gore, Harold Gilman, Cedric Morris, Eric Ravilious and Carel Weight.

An Outbreak of Talent: Bawden, Marx, Ravilious, and their Contemporaries, Pallant House Gallery, Chichester, 5 August - 1 November 2020

Between 1924 and 1925, Paul Nash taught a group of young artists at the Royal College of Art who went on to transform the world of 20th century British design. From wood-engraved book illustrations and commercial artwork, to textile and ceramic design, An Outbreak of Talent: Bawden, Marx, Ravilious, and their Contemporaries celebrates the work of Edward Bawden, Eric Ravilious, Enid Marx, Barnett Freedman, Edward Burra, Norah Braden, William Chappell and Barbara Ker-Seymer, all considered by Nash to have been part of an "outbreak of talent". Also on show is Nash’s watercolour of the Wittenham Clumps, Wittenham, 1935, as featured on this website.

The display coincides with the gallery’s major exhibition Barnett Freedman: Designs for Modern Britain also opening on 14 March.

Paul Nash's Landscapes: Oxfordshire and Beyond, Interactive Study Day at Oxford Brookes University, 15 June 2019

This interactive study day will focus on Paul Nash, looking at his Oxford connection and works inspired by the city’s surrounding area, most famously his studies of Wittenham Clumps. Nash’s larger themes of image as landscape, as surreal encounter and as wartime propaganda will also be considered.

The day will be led by three specialists; Dr Jan D. Cox, Peter Vass and Dr Ian Holgate. Cost: £65 (including tea/coffee and lunch) or £60 for Oxford Brookes staff and students.

Further details and booking here.

Battlelines Redrawn Exhibition, Cornerstone Arts Centre, Didcot, 16 October - 25 November 2018

Anna Dillon, co-creator of this website, has an exhibition of her work Battlelines Redrawn at the Cornerstone Arts Centre, Didcot. Her paintings explore the way some of the battlefields of the First World War have regenerated over the last century, focusing on landscapes of the Ypres Salient and the Somme, with influences from Paul Nash, William Orpen and John Masefield.

Arborealists and Guests Exhibition - featuring Paul Nash, Black Swan Arts, Frome, 21 July - 2 September 2018

There's a rare chance to see Paul Nash's oil painting Pond in the Fields as part of Arborealists and Guests at Black Swan Arts, Frome. The painting is from a private collection and has not been seen in public for many years. The exhibition is a beautiful show of over 50 paintings by professional artists, united by their love of trees. Entry £3, or £5 for two. Under 18s free.

Paul Nash - Sunflower Rises Exhibition, Fondation Vincent Van Gogh, Arles, France. To 28 October 2018

If you are in France over the next few months and find yourself near Arles, head for the Paul Nash exhibition at the Fondation Vincent Van Gogh. Over 30 works by Nash from 1918 to 1946 are on display, alongside photographs and archive material showing how Nash was influenced by the South of France and French painters during his trips to France in the 1920s and 1930s. The exhibition is curated by writer and art historian, Simon Grant.

Details here.

Paul Nash and the Uncanny Landscape: An exhibition curated by John Stezaker, York Art Gallery, 20 October 2017 - 15 April 2018

Acclaimed British collage artist John Stezaker explores Paul Nash's ground-breaking inter-war landscapes and Nash's profound influence on art to this day. Drawing on loans from public and private collections, Nash's work is featured alongside art by his contemporaries; Stanley Spencer, John Nash, Edward Burra, William Townsend, Henry Lamb, Sydney Carline, Tristram Hillier and Cecil Collins. The exhibition includes new works by Stezaker and a private collection of rarely seen Nash drawings, paintings, photographs and ephemera.

Details here.

Paul Nash Exhibition, Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle, 9 September 2017 - 14 January 2018

The highly successful Paul Nash exhibition has moved from Tate Britain and is now running at Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle from 9 September 2017 to 14 January 2018.

Ravilious & Co: The Pattern of Friendship, Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne, 27 May - 17 September 2017

Ravilious & Co: The Pattern of Friendship explores the relationships and collaborations between Eric Ravilious and his friends and affiliates, including Paul and John Nash, Enid Marx, Barnett Freedman, Tirzah Garwood, Edward Bawden, Thomas Hennell, Douglas Percy Bliss, Peggy Angus, Helen Binyon and Diana Low. 2017 marks the 75th anniversary of Ravilious' death.

The exhibition features the work of Ravilious alongside work by his contemporaries, some of which has never been exhibited before.

After 17 September 2017, the exhibition will tour to Millennium Gallery, Sheffield from 7 October 2017 to 7 January 2018 and Compton Verney, Warwickshire from 17 March to 10 June 2018.

The Nash Brothers and Life in the Chilterns Walk, Friday 19 May 2017

Local artist Anna Dillon will lead a special walk about the Nash brothers and their life in the Chilterns on Friday 19 May at 10.30am. Stopping to discuss their paintings along the route, this circular walk will take in the Ridgeway National Trail towards Kop Hill before continuing to Whiteleaf Hill and the Cross, then rejoining the Ridgeway for Nim Wood and the Hangings.

Furthers details here. This walk is now sold out.

Places of the Mind: British Watercolour Landscapes 1850-1950, British Museum, 23 February - 27 August 2017

Paul Nash, The Wanderer (detail), British Museum

Six rarely seen Paul Nash works are included in Places of the Mind, British Watercolour Landscapes 1850-1950 at the British Museum. This is the first exhibition devoted to landscape drawings and watercolours by British landscape artists in the Victorian and modern eras, celebrating their work during the hundred years following the death of J M W Turner.

Most of the 125 works are from the British Museum's remarkable but little-known collection and over half have never been on display before. The exhibition includes works by James McNeil Whistler, Edward Burne-Jones, John Singer Sargent, Muirhead Bone, John Nash, John Minton, Henry Moore and Graham Sutherland.

An accompanying book edited by the exhibition's curator, Kim Sloan, is available in the Museum shops and online here. Admission to the exhibition is free.

Paul Nash Exhibition, Tate Britain, 26 October 2016 - 5 March 2017

Tate Britain is holding a major Paul Nash exhibition from 26 October 2016 to 5 March 2017. A new Tate film presented by art historian James Fox explores Nash's life and work, featuring sequences shot on location at the Wittenham Clumps.

Full details here: Tate Britain Paul Nash exhibition.

Paul Nash Exhibition: Curator's Tour at Tate Britain, 27 January 2017 and Curator's Talk, 3 February 2017

The curator of Tate Britain's Paul Nash exhibition, Emma Chambers, will be giving a special guided tour of the exhibition on Friday 27th January 2017 at 18.30. Booking here

Emma Chambers will also be discussing Nash's work in a Curator's Talk on 3 February 2017 at 18.30: Booking here

Black Dog: The Dreams of Paul Nash by Dave McKean, Tate Britain, 13 November 2016

In a special exhibition event, the illustrator, comic artist, filmmaker and musician Dave McKean presents a live-staging of his new graphic novel Black Dog: The Dreams of Paul Nash at Tate Britain on 13 November 2016. This event is sold out.

Tate's new books about Paul Nash

Two new books from Tate Publishing will accompany the Tate's exhibition in October 2016: Paul Nash by exhibition curator Emma Chambers and Informal Beauty: The Photographs of Paul Nash by Simon Grant.

New Edition of Paul Nash's Autobiography "Outline"

A new edition of Paul Nash's autobiography Outline, edited by David Boyd Haycock, is published by Lund Humphries on 26 October 2016. The book includes Margaret Nash's 'Memoir of Paul Nash', in print for the first time.

Paul Nash and the Wittenham Clumps Walks, Saturday September 3 & Saturday September 10, 2016, 10.00am

As the Tate's Paul Nash exhibition approaches, Christopher Baines will lead two special walks around the Wittenham Clumps, exploring Nash's enduring fascination with this landscape and places where he worked.

Each event will begin with an illustrated talk, followed by a walk that takes in both the wooded hills of the Clumps and spectacular views of the countryside beyond. September was the month that the Nash family visited the Wittenham Clumps on holidays before the First World War, so the area will look much as it did when it was discovered by Paul Nash and his artist brother, John.

Further details and booking here.

The British Landscape Tradition: From Gainsborough to Nash, Pallant House Gallery, Chichester, 11 May - 26 June 2016

A new exhibition of rarely-seen historic landscape drawings and watercolours from the Pallant House Gallery's permanent collection. With early works by Alexander Cozens, Thomas Gainsborough and John Sell Cotman through to watercolours by 20th century artists including Ivon Hitchens, Graham Sutherland and Paul Nash. Details here: www.pallant.org.uk

Great British Drawings, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 26 March - 31 August 2015

The Ashmolean Museum's excellent exhibition of British drawings and watercolours includes two works by Paul Nash: an early picture of the Wittenham Clumps, The Wood on the Hill, 1912 and a watercolour of a crashed Second World War German bomber, Under the Cliff, 1940.

The Mad Boy, Lord Berners, My Grandmother And Me by Sofka Zinovieff

Moving from London to Oxford at the beginning of the Second World War, Paul Nash set up The Arts Bureau in Oxford, a scheme for making the best use of artists' talents in wartime. On the committee (that also included John Betjeman and John Piper) was the eccentric composer, artist and writer, Lord Berners.

Sofka Zinovieff's beautifully written book The Mad Boy, Lord Berners, My Grandmother And Me gives a fascinating insight into Lord Berner's life, his social circle and relationship with the handsome Robert Heber-Percy, twenty eight years his junior. They lived at Faringdon House in Oxfordshire and regularly entertained the glitterati of the day. Heber-Percy was Zinovieff's maternal grandfather and Zinovieff tells how, on his death, she inherited Faringdon House and came to live there.

Lord Berners' Folly, Farringdon by Paul Nash. © Tate 2015

In 1935 Lord Berners had a Folly tower built on a nearby hill as a gift for Heber-Percy. Nash photographed and painted the tower, perhaps when visiting the house. The tower has spectacular views from the top and is open on the first and third Sunday of the month, from April to October: www.faringdonfolly.org.uk

Eric Ravilious Exhibition, Dulwich Picture Gallery 1 April - 31 August 2015

When Paul Nash was a teacher at the Royal College of Art, Eric Ravilious was one of his pupils. The first major exhibition of Ravilious watercolours at the Dulwich Picture Gallery runs from 1st April to 31st August 2015, featuring over 100 paintings. The exhibition is curated by James Russell, author of the books Ravilious in Pictures and Paul Nash in Pictures: Landscape and Dream published by the Mainstone Press.

Paul Nash: Artist at War. A talk at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1 November 2014, 11.00am

As an official war artist in two World Wars, Paul Nash created stirring images that both inspired a nation and brought home the harsh realities of conflict. Oxford was Nash's home throughout the Second World War and from here he painted masterpieces such as Totes Meer and Battle of Britain.

Christopher Baines explores Nash's work in both wars, setting it in context with his work outside wartime. Following the talk there will be an opportunity to view original works by Nash in the Ashmolean's Print Room.

Tickets here: www.oxfordplayhouse.com/ticketsoxford or by phoning the Box Office at Oxford Playhouse on: 01865 305 305.

Art and Artists of the Great War with David Boyd Haycock, Waterstone's Piccadilly, Saturday, 18 October 2014, 2.00pm

How did artists depict the experience of the Great War? How did the war impact on their art and lives? In this year of commemoration, Waterstone's Piccadilly welcomes art historian David Boyd Haycock, author of A Crisis of Brilliance which focuses the young artists of the Slade through the war period, and curator of the current Paul Nash - Works on Paper exhibition at Piano Nobile Gallery, Holland Park.

David's talk on the War Artists and their paintings is followed by a Q&A discussion. All welcome. Further details: 0207 851 2400.

Paul Nash Works on Paper 1910-1946, Piano Nobile Gallery, London, 9 October - 22 November 2014

Marking the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, Paul Nash: Works on Paper 1910-1946 includes examples of Nash's work from museums and private collections, covering all the significant periods and themes in his career. A number of works are being offered for sale. Gallery talks will be given by David Boyd Haycock on 11th October at 4.00pm and 15th November at 4.00pm. Piano Nobile Gallery, 129 Portland Road, London W11 4LW. Telephone: 020 7229 1099.

Paul Nash: The Ghosts of War, BBC Four on the 14th September 2014, 9.00pm

A new documentary series for BBC Four, British Art at War: Bomberg, Sickert and Nash, explores the life and work of three great, but often neglected, British artists - Walter Sickert, David Bomberg and Paul Nash. Each artist is the subject of a 60-minute programme examining their relationship with some of the major events of the 20th century, including World War One.

Paul Nash: The Ghosts of War is the first programme in the series. Christopher Baines spoke to presenter Andrew Graham-Dixon about Nash's fascination with the Wittenham Clumps.

Battlelines Redrawn. Landscape Regeneration 100 years on by artist Anna Dillon

The Battlelines Redrawn Project is a study of how some of the battlefields of the First World War have regenerated over the last century. The focus centres on the landscapes of the Ypres Salient and The Somme using reference from paintings produced by War Artists including Paul Nash.

Brothers in Art: John and Paul Nash, Royal West of England Academy, Bristol, 19 July - 14 September 2014

Featuring over forty paintings, watercolours and drawings, Brothers in Art: John and Paul Nash offers a special opportunity to see the works of the two brothers side by side. The exhibition explores their early collaborations and interweaves their different paths in the years ahead.

Brothers in Arms: John and Paul Nash by Professor Paul Gough

Published in July 2014 to accompany the above exhibition, Brothers in Arms: John and Paul Nash examines the lives and artistic careers of the two brothers.

Kenneth Clark - Looking for Civilisation, Tate Britain, 20 May - 10 August 2014

This exhibition about Kenneth Clark as a patron, collector, art historian and broadcaster includes three works by Paul Nash: Image of the Stag, 1938, Bomber in the Corn, 1940 and Battle of Britain, 1941.

Spanning more than 80 years, The Artists Rifles: From Pre-Raphaelites to Passchendaele reviews the regiment's history and the achievements of many of its remarkable members. It includes the work of Paul and John Nash, both members of the regiment during the First World War.

Paul Nash and the Wittenham Clumps Talk, Dorchester Abbey, Oxfordshire. Saturday 5th October, 2013 at 7.30pm

Discover how the Wittenham Clumps became a rich source of inspiration for Paul Nash. Another chance to see this illustrated talk, sold out at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford and at this year's Dorchester Festival. With Christopher Baines.

Dorchester Abbey, Dorchester on Thames, Oxfordshire OX10 7HH

BBC's Countryfile visits Wittenham Clumps

Countryfile visited the Wittenham Clumps recently while making a programme on Oxfordshire. Christopher Baines spoke to Julia Bradbury about Paul Nash and his connection with the landscape. Details of the programme here:

Art Workshop at the Earth Trust by Landscape Artist Anna Dillon

I would like to pass on a huge thank you to everyone who attended the workshop at The Earth Trust on such a hot and humid day. It was a pleasure to see your work develop over the day and thank you to the Earth Trust for supporting us.

A Crisis of Brilliance Exhibition, Dulwich Picture Gallery, 12th June - 22nd September 2013

Following his book of the same title, David Boyd Haycock is curating the exhibition A Crisis of Brilliance at the Dulwich Picture Gallery, London. Paintings by Paul Nash feature alongside work by C.R.W. Nevinson, Stanley Spencer, Mark Gertler, Dora Carrington and David Bomberg who were students together at the Slade School of Art between 1908 and 1912. Their legendary tutor Henry Tonks described the group as the school's last 'crisis of brilliance'. The exhibition runs from 12th June to 22nd September 2013.

Landscape and the Life of Objects by Andrew Causey

Andrew Causey's new book Paul Nash, Landscape and the Life of Objects is published by Lund Humphries, combining up-to-date scholarship with 100 colour images.

Paul Nash: The Clare Neilson Collection, Pallant House Gallery, Chichester to 30th June 2013

A collection of Paul Nash's work amassed by his friend Clare Neilson has recently been gifted to Pallant House Gallery and is on display until 30th June. The collection includes important early wood engravings and etchings, photographs, collage, correspondence and illustrated books.

Paul Nash and the Wittenham Clumps Talk, Dorchester on Thames Festival, Saturday 11th May 2013

Thank you to everyone who came to the Paul Nash and the Wittenham Clumps talk on Saturday 11th May. The talk was sold out and the room was packed to the edges! It was great to speak to so many of you afterwards. Details of any future talks will appear on this website.

Paul Nash in Pictures: Landscape and Dream by James Russell

Paul Nash in Pictures: Landscape and Dream is published by The Mainstone Press. It follows their beautifully produced series of illustrated books on Eric Ravilious and Edward Bawden.

The book explores Nash's life, the places and people he knew - and the inspiration behind twenty-two of his oil paintings. A second volume will feature Nash's watercolours.

Art UK Website - Paul and John Nash

88 paintings by Paul Nash are now online with Art UK, a registered charity (previously known as the Public Catalogue Foundation) whose mission is to open up public collections for enjoyment, learning and research. The section on Nash is fascinating as it displays some of his lesser-known works: Visit Link

There is also a good collection of work by John Nash: Visit link

Art Workshops at the Earth Trust

To launch the Paul Nash and the Wittenham Clumps website, three art workshops for adults and families were held at the Earth Trust Centre, Little Wittenham on Friday 11 March and Saturday 12 March 2011. Participants were taken on a guided walk up the Clumps before creating artworks inspired by Nash's paintings.

We were thrilled with the quality and variety of work produced.

A selection of some of the paintings, sketches and collages are available to view here.

The workshops were supported by the North Wessex Downs AONB Sustainable Development Fund.