Sussex Landscape: Chalk, Wood and Water

 This fabulous exhibition at the Pallant House Gallery is well worth a visit; it's on until the 23 April, and is so enjoyable, you'll want to see it more than once. They say it's the first major exhibition to celebrate Sussex as a place of inspiration for artists, and they are showing some major works by artists such as William Nicholson, Duncan Grant, Vanessa Bell, Eric Ravilious, Ivon Hitchens, JMWTurner and John Constable. 

I looked round the exhibition, absorbed in the information and works in each room, and then took photographs of my favourite works which I'll add here.

Edward Burra, a great favourite of mine, I love his depictions of a scene, this one is the harbour at Hastings where there is a hive of activity with fishermen unloading their boats with the day's catch and others packing up for the evening. Burra lived in Rye and often visited Hastings. He

 worked in watercolour because he had rheumatoid arthritis and found he could work at a table rather than an easel.

Other things which I took photos of included Eric Slater's 'Rough Sea' which is a colour woodcut on paper, he was influenced by Japanese woodcuts as can be seen here. Slater lived in Sussex all his life and produced this woodcut in 1929, and is known as the 'Sussex Hokusai'

Many people love Eric Ravilious' work, including me. It's a real treat to see two of his works in this exhibition: above 'Tea at Furlongs' is evocative of the chalk downlands and below, 'Chalk Paths' is the essence of the Sussex and Wiltshire countryside.

Next I was very attracted to this painting by Nevinson is called 'View of the Sussex Weald'. Awar artist, after the war, Nevinson converted a caravan into a mobile studio which enabled him to paint the Sussex countryside at all times of the year. Whether this is a view from inside the caravan is hard to know.

This is another view of the beach at Hastings by Laetitia Yhap painted in 1987. It beautifully evokes the beach scene with fishermen in the foreground mending nets, others are making sure the the greased railway sleepers, on which the keel slides are safely in place.

This is Cuckmere Haven and the Seven Sisters, Sussex a linocut by Robert Tavener from the Emma Mason Gallery where there are lots of examples of his work, including watercolours for sale. He lived in Eastbourne from 1953 and had easy access to the South Downs.

This is only a snapshot of the exhibition, there are many fabulous works which I haven't mentioned. I was surprised that Geoffrey Camp's 'Birling Gap' wasn't in the selection, but there is a very comprehensive selection.