Falmouth Art Gallery: Collections Display 2026 Part 1

This exhibition runs until the 4th July 2026.

These displays are not curated in any particular category or theme, instead they are an eclectic mix from different artists, styles, media and themes.  I enjoy exhibitions like this, where it is made clear to me I am to enjoy each painting individually and not hunt for some deeper connecting theme that isn't there.  The art on display was lovely.

The Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society has a unique collection of some 280 pieces by Henry Scott Tuke and these are currently on long term loan to Falmouth Art Gallery.  Tuke is well known for his maritime paintings as well as his interest in painting nude youths, in a non-sexually explicit way.  Although his popularity waned after his death, in the 70s he was rediscovered by a new generation of openly gay artists.  Elton John collects his work and loaned several pieces to Falmouth Art Gallery for an exhibition in 2008.  He also received a painting as a posthumous christmas gift from Freddy Mercury.

It was lovely to see some of Tuke's work and I always find that being able to see a painting up close and personal is so very different from seeing a photograph.  Study of Boys Bathing showed two young men and a dog and it is a very charming piece.  It doesn't matter that they are naked, there is nothing salacious.  It's just young men, living and having fun.  In contrast, his Whale Blowing and Sailing Ships and Tug were much more serious pieces.

Falmouth being, such a beautiful place with a wealth of maritime inspiration, tends to have a wealth of art with those sorts of focuses.  It was lovely to see two more everyday paintings.  John Thomas Richardson's painting of the Manor Yard shows a wood clad building with an opening through to a yard beyond.  Danny Markey's Roofs and a Vapour Trail shows washing hanging on a line with a backdrop of roofs and the contrail of an airplane in the sky.  These may not be classically beautiful but they are interesting and well executed.  These sorts of images are generally lost as they are not often captured.  I think it is something to remember, don't always look to capture exactly the same views as everyone else, the everyday views are worth remembering too.

Francis Hewlett's painting of the Greenbank Hotel was absolutely stunning.  It was the piece he was working on when he died and remains unfinished with his pencil grid remaining visible in places.  It is a huge piece, with beautiful detail without being photorealistic.  It has a lovely warm tone.  I have no idea if it is beautiful because of it's unfinished state or if it would have been even more beautiful finished.  It's a lovely painting.  I would be very happy if I could have just one small section from it.

While not a huge exhibition, these were just a few of the pieces on display that I enjoyed.  Wilhelmina Barns-Graham's Hailstorm II was intriguing.  It is a drawing exploring line, exploring energy.  It was a fascinating technical piece.  Patrick Woodroffe's etching of the Runaway Bull, where men chase the bull who has been stopped in it's tracks by a tiny barking dog.  I love these old fashioned etchings.  The detail on the tree and the bull's fur is just beautiful.  Lawrence Ham's Figures on a Beach was a humourous and bright semi-abstract picture.  Maurice Sumray's Unquiet Offering was a little disturbing and I would have liked an explanation of what is happening but apparently he seldom explains his work.

I look forward to Part II and finding some more favourite pieces.

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