Harry Bush, Summer Morning, 1953.
Sanctuary: Artist-Gardeners 1919-1939
at the Garden Museum
This selling exhibition at the Garden
Museum focuses on a number of
green-fingered British artists from the
interwar period (1919-39) who drew
inspiration from horticulture. While
there are some relatively well-known
names here – Eric Gill, Eric Ravilious
and Evelyn Dunbar are all present and
correct – most artists included will be
unfamiliar to all but the most devoted
fans of British art of the era. It’s a
welcome introduction to a lot of overlooked
talent: Harry Bush (1883-1957),
for example, spent years painting the
same set of views of his garden in
suburban Wimbledon, producing
canvases that echoed the marvels of
Dutch Golden Age landscape painting.
Other highlights include Margaret
Duncan’s improbably dramatic view
of Reigate, a gently surreal still life by
Gerald Leet, and Marion Adnams’s
delicate botanical studies. This is a
quietly fascinating show. Prices range
from £370 to £75,000.
‘Sanctuary: Artist-Gardeners 1919-1939’ is at the Garden Museum
5 Lambeth Palace
Road, London SE1 (020-7401 8865)
until 5 April.
This article appeared in The Week on 7 March 2020.
