Wow: Women Only Works on Paper

WOW is an exhibition that showcases 38 British women artists who worked on paper between 1905 and 1975. The artists used various techniques, including traditional and innovative methods, to transform paper into beautiful and complex works of art. The exhibition celebrates the diversity of these approaches and highlights the ways in which paper provided artists with a rich arena for artistic innovation. The works include portraits, landscapes, botanical studies, and genre scenes, and demonstrate the artists' skill and dexterity in drawing on paper. The exhibition also highlights the unique contribution of women artists to the graphic arts in 20th-century Britain.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 112 pages
Publication date: 28 April 2021
Publisher: Liss Llewellyn

WOW, a collaborative exhibition between Liss Llewellyn and the Laing Art Gallery, presents a captivating exploration of 38 British women artists who worked on paper between 1905 and 1975. This transformative period marked a significant milestone for women in the arts, showcasing their diverse approaches and innovative techniques. The featured artists approached the medium with a range of methods, employing both traditional and cutting-edge techniques to transform paper into breathtaking and intricate works of art.

The exhibition celebrates the rich diversity of these artistic approaches, highlighting how paper provided artists with a fertile ground for artistic innovation. The adaptability of paper allows for a multitude of techniques, from its traditional role as a support for drawings and prints to the creation of collages and sculptures. The featured artists responded to the inherent qualities of paper, such as its malleability, smoothness, and sensuality, to test ideas, express emotions, or bring a finished work to life.

One of the most striking aspects of this exhibition is the way in which the works resonate at different stages of development. Through these studies, we witness the germination of an idea, as seen in Clare Leighton's iconic Southern Harvest or Evelyn Dunbar's celebrated works for the War Artist's Advisory Committee. The artists' choices of hand-made, mold-made, or machine-made papers in various weights, textures, and tints further add to the depth and complexity of their works, as they worked with a wide range of media, including pencil, ink, pastel, watercolour, tempera, and oil.

Despite the artists' individual preferences and circumstances, their choices were sometimes influenced by the size of the paper they worked on. Women artists, like Frances Richards and Tirzah Garwood, often found themselves working on smaller paper due to limited resources or space constraints. However, their dedication and creativity in utilizing the available space resulted in remarkable works that showcase their exceptional talent and artistic vision.

WOW is a testament to the enduring power of paper as a medium for artistic expression and the remarkable contributions of British women artists during this transformative period. It invites viewers to immerse themselves in the world of these artists, exploring the depth and richness of their artistic contributions and celebrating the diversity and innovation that paper has enabled them to achieve.

Weight: 348g
Dimension: 165 x 230 x 11 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781999314576