Edward Bawden: Storyteller

London’s Morley College is set to host what it says is the first major retrospective of artist and designer Edward Bawden’s work since his death in 1989.

Canterbury Tales (1958-61), mural, oil on wood, by Edward Bawden CBE RA (1903-89)
Canterbury Tales (1958-61), mural, oil on wood, by Edward Bawden CBE RA (1903-89)

The exhibition will focus, the gallery says, on Bawden’s ‘exceptional ability to tell stories through his work. Often in surprising ways’.

Curated by Bawden experts Peyton Skipworth and Alan Powers, and will feature some of his book covers, advertisements, theatre designs and linocut prints.

There will also be more rarely-seen items, including miniature storybooks created for his children.

Canterbury Tales (1958-61), mural, oil on wood, by Edward Bawden CBE RA (1903-89)
Canterbury Tales (1958-61), mural, oil on wood, by Edward Bawden CBE RA (1903-89)

A highlight will be a large painted map of Scarborough commissioned by Tom Laughton of the Pavilion Hotel, which has not previously been loaned for exhibition.

Morley College also plays host to a Bawden mural – a reinterpretation of the Canterbury Tales – which is sited in the college refectory.

The mural, created in 1958, replaces a 1928 artwork originally created by Bawden and Eric Ravilious, which was destroyed by bomb damage in the Second World War.

Detail from Canterbury Tales (1958-61), mural, oil on wood, by Edward Bawden CBE RA (1903-89)
Detail from Canterbury Tales (1958-61), mural, oil on wood, by Edward Bawden CBE RA (1903-89)

Edward Bawden: Storyteller is at Morley Gallery, 61 Westminster Road, London SE1, from 4-26 November

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