Tate Gallery, St. Ives

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Tate Gallery, CornwallThe small Cornish town of St Ives has been an attraction for painters for over a century, amongst its early visitors being JMW Turner, Whistler and the young Sickert. In 1928, on a visit to St Ives, Ben Nicholson and Christopher Wood discovered the work of retired mariner Alfred Wallis, whose untutored paintings of town and seascapes had a profound influence on the development of their work. In 1939, with the outbreak of war, Nicholson returned to settle in St Ives with Barbara Hepworth and they were joined by Naum Gabo, thus establishing in West Cornwall an outpost for the abstract avant garde, international in outlook but strongly rooted in the local landscape.

The potter Bernard Leach had been working in St Ives since 1920 and the ceramic tradition which he established with Shoji Hamada adds a further dimension to St Ives' international standing.

After the war the emergence of a younger generation including Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Peter Lanyon, John Wells, Terry Frost, Bryan Winter, Patrick Heron and Roger Hilton had a decisive effect on the development of painting in Britain in the second half of the 20th century. Many artists are associated with St Ives and West Cornwall, its rich history and its vivid artistic life. Tate St Ives also manages the Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden.

This Cornwall attraction is open Mar-Oct daily 10-5.30pm; Nov-Feb Tues-Sun 10am-4.30pm. £5.50 adults, under 18s and over 60s free.

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