I am delighted to be involved in two landmark art exhibitions at major British galleries and museums during 2026.
TROUBLEMAKERS & PROPHETS: ELIZABETH ALLEN AND OTHER VISIONARY ARTISTS
Compton Verney, Warwickshire
28th March until 31st August 2026
For more information – click here.
The first exhibition covers the incredible work and story of Miss Elizabeth Allen (1883-1967), a forgotten woman artist who I have been researching since I discovered a curious piece of her work at auction in 2018.
Since then, I have rediscovered her story, acquired old catalogues of her work from galleries in London, Los Angeles and New York, met fellow collectors, built an online ‘catalogue raisonée’, and republished an essay which is the only extensive, academic study of her work to date. I am also delighted and honoured to be lending two of her works, including the piece I first bought at auction, from my personal collection to the exhibition.
Her story is remarkable, from living in poverty and creating her art in a tin hut in a forest, to international global recognition after her work was discovered by leading modern artists of the 1960s, to her sudden death aged 84 just as her star has risen to its highest point – to then being almost entirely forgotten for half a century.
To read more about the incredible Miss Elizabeth Allen and her art – click here.
To view the ‘catalogue raisonée’ – click here.
To read my 2018 blog post – click here.
On Thursday 9th July, I will take part in a Q&A session covering Elizabeth Allen and her story and art, together with my journey in rediscovering this fascinating and important artist. To book tickets, please contact the Compton Verney team at info@comptonverney.org.uk.
About the exhibition, the curators say;
“Discover a bold, immersive exhibition exploring art, isolation and extraordinary vision.
Elizabeth Allen’s creations are absurd, darkly funny, and strikingly prophetic. In this exhibition she is joined by a host of other “visionary artists” who invite you to step into a vibrant, topsy-turvy world where 12 of her works are displayed alongside more than 15 artists who also saw life differently. Over four rooms, explore bold responses to contemporary life from artists who turn struggle into powerful visual statements.
Known as ‘Queen’, Allen was on the cusp of wider recognition when she died in 1967, after years of living in a cabin in the forest. Her work reveals a life shaped by fierce conviction and apocalyptic vision. This exhibition includes the first public showing of Queen’s handmade textile autobiography – the ‘Autobiraggraphy’.
Queen’s textile proclamations lead a chorus of works made from fragments – toys, furniture, clothing, news, religion and folklore. From detailed beadwork to large-scale sculpture, these pieces transform everyday chaos into something fantastical, reflective and urgent.“
Compton Verney is home to the national folk art collection, which includes a piece of Allen’s work in their permanent collection. Housed in a fine 18th century Georgian Palladian country house set in sweeping grounds designed by Capability Brown, the collections also include 16th and 17thC Neapolitan art, British art including works by Reynolds and portraits of Tudor monarchs, and work by Enid Marx.
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The second exhibition includes the work of Jewish Viennese emigrant artist Helen Grunwald (1925-88), whose views of life in London made from the 1950s-80s and her role as art teacher set her at the heart of a commune of influential artists based in the Abbey Arts Centre, North London. I first came across Grunwald’s work at auction in 2016, when I acquired a painting by her that may have links to a major commission for decorating the interior of a chapel in London.
I am delighted and honoured to be lending a group of her works from my collection to the exhibition.
Title, dates, location and further details to appear here when they are released.
To read my 2016 blog post on the first piece of Grunwald’s work I acquired – click here.
