Barbara Hepworth: Art & Life

27 May to 3 September 2023

Towner Eastbourne

This exhibition, having received acclaim nationwide following showings in Wakefield, Edinburgh, and St Ives, will present a selection of Barbara Hepworth's most renowned sculptures. The showcase will include the modern abstract carving that marked the initiation of her career in the 1920s and 1930s, her iconic strung sculptures from the 1940s and 1950s, and large-scale bronze and carved sculptures from later in her career. Alongside works from private collections unseen since the 1970s, the exhibition will feature key loans from national public collections, as well as rarely seen drawings, paintings, and fabric designs. Themed around Hepworth's broader cultural interests in music, dance, theatre, politics, and literature, the exhibition aims to delve into these influences, fostering new interpretations and presentations of her work.

The exhibition will commence with an overview of Barbara Hepworth’s work, showcasing the three recurring sculptural forms she consistently revisited throughout her career, using a variety of materials. Despite their abstract nature, these forms reveal Hepworth’s enduring ability to articulate fundamental human experiences, from interpersonal relationships to our connection to the world around us. An in-depth exploration of Hepworth’s Yorkshire childhood, using archive material and photographs, will encompass some of the artist’s earliest known paintings, carvings, and life drawings as she ventured into exploring movement and the human form. The exhibition will also shed light on Hepworth’s enthusiasm for dance, illustrating how she captured movement with gestural paintings and sculptures such as Forms in Movement (Galliard) and Curved Form (Pavan), contextualising her transition to creating sculptures in metal in the 1950s.

About Towner Eastbourne

Honoured with the Art Fund’s Museum of the Year 2020 award, Towner Eastbourne has been dedicated to collecting and exhibiting contemporary art for nearly a century. Attracting up to 175,000 visitors annually, it presents a dynamic program featuring exhibitions, acquisitions, and commissions by a diverse array of artists at various stages of their careers.

Towner 100 marks a year-long celebration of the gallery's centenary, with the Turner Prize 2023 serving as the centrepiece of an ambitious exhibition programme. Known for its modern British art, including the largest collection of works by Eric Ravilious (1903–1942), Towner's Collection has grown to encompass national and international contemporary art, featuring works by artists like Dineo Seshee Bopape, John Akomfrah, Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Tacita Dean, Anya Gallaccio, Wolfgang Tillmans, and more recently, Rachel Jones, Helen Cammock, Jananne Al-Ani, and Clare Woods.

Situated in Eastbourne’s cultural centre, the Devonshire Quarter, the award-winning gallery designed by Rick Mather Architects offers a free and welcoming community space. Housing a Collection Library and a cinema screening a diverse array of films, the gallery provides places for study and relaxation. The Learning & Engagement Programme offers creative activities for families, schools, and adults, with a particular focus on those dealing with mental health conditions. The participatory programme facilitates collaboration between participants and artists to co-create new work. A professional development initiative for artists of all levels provides artist residencies, mentoring, and opportunities for collaboration and showcasing. Opened in April 2009, the building is the largest purpose-built gallery in the South East.