The St Ives School refers to a group of artists living and working in the Cornish town of St Ives.Tate St Ives, St Ives School

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK ...

Accessed 9 September 2017. The term is often used to refer to the 20th century groups which sprung up after the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

around such artists as Borlase Smart, however there was considerable artistic activity there from the late 19th Century onwards.

History

The town became a magnet for artists following the extension to west

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

of the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...

in 1877. Painter

James McNeill Whistler James Abbott McNeill Whistler (; July 10, 1834July 17, 1903) was an American painter in oils and watercolor, and printmaker, active during the American Gilded Age and based primarily in the United Kingdom. He eschewed sentimentality and moral a ...

and his pupils,

Walter Sickert Walter Richard Sickert (31 May 1860 – 22 January 1942) was a German-born British painter and printmaker who was a member of the Camden Town Group of Post-Impressionist artists in early 20th-century London. He was an important influence on d ...

and Mortimer Mempes, arrived in 1884, and spent the winter in the town.The Early Artists' Colony
from St Ives Society of Artists.

The Sloop Inn The Sloop Inn is an inn in St Ives, Cornwall, England, located on the wharf. It is one of the oldest inns in Cornwall, the public house is dated to "circa 1312" although the present building was built in the 17th or 18th century. Made of granit ...

in St Ives, located on the wharf, was the favourite haunt of Victorian artists including Louis Grier. Many of his paintings hung there in earlier years.

Albert Julius Olsson Albert Julius Olsson (1 February 1864 – 7 September 1942) was a British Marine art, maritime artist and keen yachtsman. Olsson cruised with his yacht most summers, and The Studio (magazine), The Studio commented: 'He knows the way from t ...

and Louis Grier opened the town's first art school in 1888, and were later joined by

Algernon Talmage Algernon Mayow Talmage (23 February 1871 – 14 September 1939) was a British Impressionist painter. Life and education Algernon Talmage was born in Fifield, Oxfordshire, the son of Rev. John Mayow Talmage, a clergyman of Cornish sto ...

. Talmage lived and worked in his studio (then called 'The Cabin', located on Westcotts Quay, St Ives). John Noble Barlow settled in St Ives in 1892, although later, he had a studio in the Lamorna Valley, Cornwall.

Thomas Millie Dow Thomas Millie Dow (28 October 1848 – 3 July 1919) was a Scottish artist and member of the Glasgow Boys school. He was a member of The Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour and the New English Art Club. Early life and educatio ...

moved with his family to St Ives in 1894, where Dow joined his friends and fellow painters Louis Grier and Lowell Dyer as members of the St Ives Art Club.

Expatriate artists

American Impressionist painters Edward Emerson Simmons and

Howard Russell Butler Howard Russell Butler (March 3, 1856 – May 20, 1934) was an American painter and founder of the American Fine Arts Society. Butler persuaded Andrew Carnegie to fund the construction of Carnegie Lake near Princeton University, supervised the cons ...

came to St Ives in 1886, and founded a studio at

Porthmeor Porthmeor (from , meaning "large cove") is a hamlet that consists of two farms, Higher and Lower Porthmeor, in the parish of Zennor in Cornwall, England. It should not be confused with Porthmeor beach at St Ives. Higher Porthmeor lies along the ...

. Butler stayed for two summers, but Simmons and his wife, artist Vesta Simmons, lived and painted in the area until 1891. Swedish artist

Anders Zorn Anders Leonard Zorn (18 February 1860 – 22 August 1920) was a Swedish artist who attained international success as a painter, sculptor, and etching artist. His portrait subjects include King Oscar II of Sweden and three President of the Un ...

painted in St Ives, 1887–88, and his ''Fish Market, St Ives'' won a gold medal at the 1889 Paris Salon. American painters Sydney Laurence and Alexandrina Dupre honeymooned in St Ives in Summer 1889, and their stay in the fishing village and

art colony Art colonies are organic congregations of artists in towns, villages and rural areas, who are often drawn to areas of natural beauty, the prior existence of other artists, art schools there, or a lower cost of living. They are typically mission ...

eventually extended for nearly fifteen years. Canadian painter

Emily Carr Emily Carr (December 13, 1871 – March 2, 1945) was a Canadian artist who was inspired by the monumental art and villages of the First Nations and the landscapes of British Columbia. She also was a vivid writer and chronicler of life in her sur ...

came to St Ives in 1899, and studied under Olsson and Talmage. Australian painter

Hayley Lever Richard Hayley Lever (28 September 1876 – 6 December 1958) was an Australian-American painter, etcher, lecturer and art teacher. His work was part of the art competitions at the 1928 Summer Olympics and the 1932 Summer Olympics. Life and wor ...

first came to St Ives in 1900, married a local woman, Aida Gale, in 1905, and painted there until their 1914 emigration to the United States, while another Australian

E. Phillips Fox Emanuel Phillips Fox (12 March 1865 – 8 October 1915) was an Australian impressionism, impressionist painter. Born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria, Fox studied at the National Gallery of Victoria Art School. He travelled to Paris to study ...

met his wife-to-be, artist

Ethel Carrick Ethel Carrick, later Ethel Carrick Fox (7 February 1872 – 17 June 1952) was an English Impressionist and Post-Impressionist painter. Much of her career was spent in France and in Australia, where she was associated with the movement known as ...

, there in 1903. American painter

Walter Elmer Schofield Walter Elmer Schofield (September 10, 1866 – March 1, 1944) was an American Impressionist landscape and marine painter. Although he never lived in New Hope or Bucks County, Schofield is regarded as one of the Pennsylvania Impressionists ...

and his wife made St Ives their residence from 1903 to 1907, lived in

Perranporth Perranporth () is a seaside resort town on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is 2.1 miles east of the St Agnes Heritage Coastline, and around 7 miles south-west of Newquay. Perranporth and its long beach face the Atla ...

after World War I, and retired to

Breage Breage or Breaca (with many variant spellings) is a saint venerated in Cornwall and South West England. According to her late hagiography, she was an Irish nun of the 5th or 6th century who founded a church in Cornwall. The village and civil par ...

in 1937.David Tovey, ''Creating A Splash - The St. Ives Society of Artists - The First 25 Years (1927–1952)'' (Hilmarton Manor Press, 2003). Schofield recommended the area to fellow American painters George Oberteuffer, Frank Shill and

Frederick Judd Waugh Frederick Judd Waugh (September 13, 1861 in Bordentown, New Jersey – September 10, 1940) was an American artist, primarily known as a marine artist. During World War I, he designed ship camouflage for the U.S. Navy, under the direction of Ever ...

. American artist

Paul Dougherty Paul Dougherty may refer to: * Paul Dougherty (footballer) * Paul Dougherty (artist) Paul Hampden Dougherty (September 6, 1877 – January 9, 1947) was an American marine painter. Dougherty (pronounced dog-er-tee) was recognized for his Americ ...

lived six months of the year in St. Ives from 1908-1913 following the death of his wife, developing the maritime style for which he would become most famous. File:Julius Olsson - Plateada luz de luna en St Ives.jpg, Julius Olsson, ''Silver Moonlight, St Ives Bay'',

Southampton City Art Gallery The Southampton City Art Gallery is an art gallery in Southampton, southern England. It is located in the Civic Centre on Commercial Road. The gallery opened in 1939 with much of the initial funding from the gallery coming from two bequests, o ...

, UK File:Algernon Mayow Talmage-Marina.jpg, Algernon Talmage, ''Marine'',

Bushey Museum Bushey Museum is in Bushey, Hertfordshire. It was officially opened as a volunteer-run museum in October 1993, having achieved Full Registration with the Museums and Galleries Commission. In the week prior to opening, the Museum won joint fir ...

, Hertfordshire, UK File:John Noble Barlow Cliff Scene.jpg, John Noble Barlow, ''Cliff Scene'',

Royal Cornwall Museum The Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery, formerly known as the Royal Cornwall Museum, is a museum in Truro, England, which holds an extensive mineral collection rooted in Cornwall's mining and engineering heritage (including much of the mineral coll ...

, Truro, UK File:Thomas Millie Dow - St Ives Harbour.jpg, Thomas Millie Dow, ''St Ives Harbour'', File:'Low Tide, St. Ives Harbor' by Edward Emerson Simmons, 1887.jpg, Edward Simmons, ''Low Tide, St Ives Harbor'', private collection File:Yellow Sweater.jpg, Howard Russell Baker, ''Yellow Sweater'', private collection File:Anders Zorn - Fiskmarknad i St. Ives.jpg, Anders Zorn, ''Fish Market, St Ives'', private collection File:Brooklyn Museum - Winter St. Ives - Hayley Lever - overall.jpg, Hayley Lever, ''Winter in St Ives'',

Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 500,000 objects. Located near the Prospect Heig ...

, New York City File:Waugh Southwesterly Gale, St Ives SAAM-1909 9 3 1.jpg, Frederick Judd Waugh, ''Southwesterly Gale, St Ives'',

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

, Washington, D.C.

Post-WWI

In 1920

Bernard Leach Bernard Howell Leach (5 January 1887 – 6 May 1979) was a British studio potter and art teacher. He is regarded as the "Father of British studio pottery". Biography Early years (Japan) Leach was born in Hong Kong. His mother Eleanor (n� ...

and

Shoji Hamada A is a door, window or room divider used in traditional Japanese architecture, consisting of translucent (or transparent) sheets on a lattice frame. Where light transmission is not needed, the similar but opaque '' fusuma'' is used (/close ...

set up a pottery in St Ives, creating a further international art connection for the town. In 1928

Ben Nicholson Benjamin Lauder Nicholson, OM (10 April 1894 – 6 February 1982) was an English painter of abstract compositions (sometimes in low relief), landscapes, and still-life. He was one of the leading promoters of abstract art in England. Backg ...

and Christopher Wood visited St Ives where they were impressed by the work of local artist

Alfred Wallis Alfred Wallis (18 August 1855 – 29 August 1942) was a British artist and fisherman, known for his port landscapes and shipping scenes painted in a naïve style. Having no artistic training, he began painting at the age of 70, using househo ...

. This started another strand in the development of the Cornish fishing port as an artists' colony. The St Ives School of Painting was established in the historic Porthmeor studios at the centre of St Ives' artists' quarter in 1938 by Borlase Smart and

Leonard Fuller Dr. Leonard F. Fuller (August 21, 1890 – April 23, 1987) was a noted American radio pioneer. In 1919, Fuller earned a PhD degree at the Stanford Department of Electrical Engineering. In World War I, he was part of the antisubmarine group of the ...

. With the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1939, Ben Nicholson and his then wife the sculptor

Barbara Hepworth Dame Jocelyn Barbara Hepworth (10 January 1903 – 20 May 1975) was an English artist and sculptor. Her work exemplifies Modernism and in particular modern sculpture. Along with artists such as Ben Nicholson and Naum Gabo, Hepworth was a leadin ...

settled in St Ives, establishing an outpost for the abstract avant-garde movement in west Cornwall. They were soon joined by the prominent Russian Constructivist sculptor

Naum Gabo Naum Gabo (born Naum Neemia Pevsner; Russian language, Russian: Наум Борисович Певзнер; Hebrew language, Hebrew: נחום נחמיה פבזנר) (23 August 1977) was an influential sculptor, theorist, and key figure in Russia's ...

. After the war ended, a new and younger generation of artists emerged, led by Hepworth and Nicholson (Gabo departed in 1946). From about 1950 a group of younger artists gathered in St Ives who included

Peter Lanyon George Peter Lanyon (8 February 1918 – 31 August 1964) was a British painter of landscapes leaning heavily towards abstraction. Lanyon was one of the most important artists to emerge in post-war Britain. Despite his early death at the ag ...

, John Wells,

Roger Hilton Roger Hilton CBE (1911–1975) was a pioneer of abstract art in post-Second World War Britain. Often associated with the 'middle generation' of St Ives painters – Terry Frost, Patrick Heron, Peter Lanyon & Bryan Wynter – he spent mu ...

Rose Hilton Rose Hilton, née Phipps (15 August 1931 – 19 March 2019) was a British painter living in Cornwall. Her husband said that he would be the only artist in their relationship, but she achieved recognition after he died. Life Hilton was born in Ke ...

Bryan Wynter Brayane Herbert Wynter (8 September 1915 – 2 February 1975)Patrick Heron Patrick Heron (30 January 1920 – 20 March 1999) was a British abstract and figurative artist, critic, writer, and polemicist, who lived in Zennor, Cornwall. Heron was recognised as one of the leading painters of his generation. Influenced ...

Terry Frost Sir Terence Ernest Manitou Frost RA (13 October 1915 – 1 September 2003) was a British abstract artist, who worked in Newlyn, Cornwall. Frost was renowned for his use of the Cornish light, colour and shape to start a new art movement in ...

, Alexander Mackenzie, Harry Ousey,

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Order of the British Empire, CBE (8 June 1912 – 26 January 2004) was one of the foremost British Abstract art, abstract artists, a member of the influential Penwith Society of Arts. Early life Wilhelmina Barns-Grah ...

Stass Paraskos Stass Paraskos (; 17 March 1933 – 4 March 2014) was a British-Cypriot painter, sculptor, and writer. Born and raised in Cyprus, he spent much of his life working and teaching in England, where he famously became embroiled in a 1966 obscenity ...

, Paul Feiler, and Karl Weschke together with the pioneer modern potter,

(Nicholson departed in 1958), and including, for a while, Sven Berlin. It is with this group, together with Hepworth and Nicholson, that the term 'St Ives School' is particularly associated. A 2010 ninety-minute

BBC 4 BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

film, "The Art of Cornwall", presented by

James Fox James William Fox (born William Fox; 19 May 1939) is an English actor known for his work in film and television. Fox's career began in the 1960s through roles in films such as '' The Servant'' and ''Performance''. He is also known for his role ...

explored in some detail the lives and works of many of the key figures and the contributions they made in establishing St Ives as a major centre of British art from the 1920s onwards. Helen Hoyle's review of this programmeHelen Hoyle, ''review of The Art of Cornwall''
artcornwall.org. Accessed 9 September 2017 is also very informative.

St Ives School today

The heyday of the St Ives School was in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1993, the

Tate St Ives Tate St Ives is an art gallery in St Ives, Cornwall, St Ives, Cornwall, England, exhibiting work by modern British artists with links to the St Ives area. The Tate also took over management of another museum in the town, the Barbara Hepworth Mu ...

, a new, purpose-built art gallery overlooking

Beach, was opened which exhibits the

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK ...

collection of St Ives School art.

References

External links