Alfred Wallis, Modern Art

Alfred Wallis exhibition
StuartShave/Modern Art is playing host to forty-four paintings by the elusive fisherman and painter Alfred Wallis this summer, straight from the Kettle's Yard collection in Cambridge. Something of a secret gem, Wallis was discovered by famous British artists Ben Nicholson and Christopher Wood during a visit to St Ives in 1928. Now Wallis is held in high regard as a uniquely naive artist with a rare ability to capture the British coast. 
Who is Alfred Wallis? Art and career
Wallis was a sailor all his life, working as a marine scrap merchant in St Ives and only turned to painting when his wife died in 1922. All of his works are filled with the thunderous waves and icy winds of his adventures at sea: capturing shipwrecks, harbours and serene seascapes all from memory. Untrained Wallis had no concept of perspective or composition, but instead relied upon his own instincts to arrange his paintings and organise objects according to importance. A restrained palette of stormy greys, deep marine blues and fresh Cornish greens washes his watery canvases, which have. Unfortunately Wallis's life had a sad end as he died in a workhouse in Penzance and his artistic talents were never appreciated in his lifetime. 
Get to grips with why this quietly lovely artist caught the attention of some of the greatest British artists of the 20th century at the StuartShave/ModernArt exhibition. 
Private view, Thursday 9th July, 6-8pm