Jones, Piper, Praed, Whybrow

ELEVEN AND A HALF is delighted to present a show of recent paintings by four of the best known names in contemporary Cornish art. All have been painting in West Cornwall for several decades. All have been exhibited widely, both throughout Cornwall and nationwide. All are full members of the Penwith Society of Artists, the prestigious collective founded by Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson in the mid-twentieth century.

Robert Jones was born in Cornwall in 1943. After a spell teaching and several years working as a fisherman, a sell-out exhibition at the well-known Newlyn Orion Gallery encouraged him to take up painting full-time. The inspiration for Robert work stretches back to the beaches, coves and cliffs of the coast near Newquay where he grew up. Wind-swept trees, the ever-changing light and dramatic weather conditions made a big impression and still form the subject matter for much of his work. His knowledge of the seas and skies of Cornwall allow him to capture all of the elements of the seascape and landscape in a way that few others manage.

John Piper was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire in 1946 and moved to Cornwall while still at school. Strongly influenced by the countryside of West Cornwall, John is well known for his paintings of the moors, carns, headlands and cliffs that characterise this landscape. More recently cottages and farm buildings have been predominant in his work. He applies paint in several layers, often with deeply etched lines allowing contrasting colours to show through. Looming skies or large expanses of moorland create a dramatic, often stark effect. John always works with oils, smaller paintings usually being on board, larger on canvas.

Michael Praed was born in Cornwall in 1941 and studied art locally, at the Penzance and Falmouth Schools of Art. He taught painting and drawing in Penzance for nearly thirty years before leaving to concentrate full-time on his own painting. Michael's paintings of the Cornish coastline, ports and fishing boats have a distinctive personal style and are instantly recognisable. The strong, near vertical lines often that often pervade the work evoke those that are omnipresent in the granite cliffs and harbours of Penwith. Bright hulls of boats contrast with the natural sea blues and rust-coloured rocks that characterise many of the paintings.

Terry Whybrow was born in 1932 in St Pancras, London. He trained and worked as a furniture designer for many years before moving to Cornwall in 1980 and taking up painting full-time. Terry was heavily influenced by the abstract movement that had been based in St Ives in the mid-twentieth century, in particular Ben Nicholson and Sir Terry Frost. Reversing the trend of many artists, the shapes and forms of his early work gradually developed into the fruit and bowls of the still-lifes for which he has become well-known, whilst always retaining a strong sense of composition and structure from his design background. His works have a serene and tranquil nature that belie Terry’s meticulous approach to their painting, framing and indeed naming.

ELEVEN AND A HALF is an art dealership based in London that specialises in work from Cornwall. We exhibit at the A&D Gallery in London, Mowhay Barn in Cornwall, and at art fairs nationwide.