Paul Nash was fascinated with Britain’s ancient past and spent time in southern England exploring the Downs and coastal areas. Equally inspired by the equinox and the phases of the moon, he used all these influences in his work, interpreting his environment according to a unique, personal mythology, evolving throughout his career.
Featuring a lifetime’s work from his earliest drawings through to his iconic Second World War paintings, Tate Britain‘s exhibition (26 October 2016 – 5 March 2017) reveals Nash’s importance to British modern art in the most significant show of his work for a generation.
Moon Aviary, 1937, an important surrealist sculpture by Nash, lost for more than 70 years, has been rediscovered stored in pieces in a cardboard box, and has been refurbished and reconstructed for the exhibition. The sculpture was shown in surrealist exhibitions in the late 1930s, but, made of fragile and found materials including old egg crates, wooden bobbins, ivory and stone, it was thought to have disintegrated or been destroyed long ago.
[Source: Tate Britain]