The Courtauld Gallery unveils first exhibition devoted to Barbara Hepworth’s work with colour
- Uniting for the first time Barbara Hepworth’s radical painted sculptures from the 1940s
- On view in a London gallery for the first time since it was acquired for the nation last year following major £3.8 million fundraising appeal –Sculpture with Colour (Oval Form), Pale Blue and Red(1943) – a breakthrough sculpture in Hepworth’s careerandrecognised as a masterpiece of British abstract modernism.
The Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen Exhibition:Hepworth in Colour
12 June– 6 September2026
Press images:
The CourtauldGallerypresentsthe first exhibition devoted to Barbara Hepworth’s lifelong fascination with colour,shedding light on an unexpected and unexplored aspect of the work of one of the most celebratedBritishartists of the 20thcentury.
Barbara Hepworth (1903–1975)is best knownfor her abstractsculpturesinspired by nature and the rugged seaside landscapes of Cornwall,where she lived and workedfrom 1939.Hepworth’spractice isoften characterisedin terms ofhercommitment todirect carvingand‘truth tomaterials’.Little attention has been given to the importance of colour in her work.Discussing herinnovativeuse of colourin 1970,shesaid:“my colour has beenaccepted,butnever understood.”
Bringing together18sculptures and26drawingsand paintings,The Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen Exhibition:Hepworth inColourwill bethe first exhibition to focus on this important butoften overlooked aspect ofHepworth’swork.
Hepworth’s early interest inpaintedcolourdates toٳmid-1930swhen she and her future husband, Ben Nicholson, formed part of the European avant-garde.In1939,just beforeoutbreak of ٳSecondWorldWar,sheleftLondon for Cornwallwith her three young children,takingwith hera single sculpture –herveryfirst study for asculpturewith colour.Over ٳfollowingyears, the landscape of CornwallinspiredHepworthto develop thisinitialexperiment,moving herwork in new directionsandestablishinga lifelong fascination with colour.At the heart of the exhibitionwill beٳremarkable group of painted sculpturesmadebetween1940 and 1948.Hepworthlaterrecalledhow,“I usedcolourand strings in many ofthe carvings of this time. Thecolour in the concavitiesplunged me into the depths of water,cavesor shallows…”.Theseearlyworksincludeٳboldly paintedstonecarvingsEidos(1947-8)from the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne,AustraliaandSculpture with Colour(Eos)(1946)from a private collection in Hong Kong. Theyareexhibitedtogetherin the UKfor the first timesince1954.
A major highlight of the exhibition will be the painted wood carving,Sculpture with Colour (Oval Form), Pale Blue and Red,of1943, which was acquired by The Hepworth Wakefield in 2025 following the successful national fundraising campaign in collaboration with Art Fund to raise £3.8 million.Sculpture with Colour (Oval Form), Pale Blue and Redmarked a breakthrough moment in Hepworth’s career, combining strings and colour and, for the first time, the beautiful pale blue, which sheassociated with the Cornish skies and coast. In private hands since it was created, and rarelyexhibited, this will be the first time the sculpture is displayed in London since it wasacquiredfor the nation.For Hepworth,the strings in her early sculptures“were the tension I felt between myself and the sea, the wind or the hill”.
Other iconic painted stringed sculptures in the exhibition includeWave, 1943-44, from the National Galleries of Scotland andPelagos(‘sea’ in Greek), 1946 from Tate, the latter directly inspired by the sculptor’s view from her studio onto the bay in St Ives in Cornwall.Theexhibition also unites for the first time from private and public collections the six versions ofSculpture with Colour (Deep Blue and Red),made between 1940and 1943,featuringcontrastingredstringshoveringoverastrikingblueinterior.
Alongsidesculptures,the exhibitionfeaturesa richselectionofHepworth’sdrawings with colour.During the first years of the warHepworth lacked the materials, studiospaceand time to produce much sculpturebutherdrawings allowed her to continue toexplore anddevelop her ideas. She recalled,“In the late evenings, and during the night I did innumerable drawings…exploring the particular tensions and relationships of form and colour which were to occupy me in sculpture during the later years of the war.”These drawings, usuallyentitled“drawing for sculpture”areremarkablefor theirintricatecrystalline forms, punctuated with strong blues,redsandgreens.
The exhibition extends into the 1950s and 1960s to reflect how colour continued to occupy Hepworth in newand innovativeways,includingin her expressive paintings, and in herworkwith patinatedbronzeandcolouredmarble.
The Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen Exhibition: Hepworth inColouris curated by Dr Alexandra Gerstein, Curator of Sculpture and Decorative Arts at the Courtauld Gallery and Dr Stephen Feeke, independent writer and curator whose PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art focused on Barbara Hepworth’s bronze sculptures.
To coincide with the exhibition, a display ofrarephotographs, taken in the 1930s by Paul Laib (1932–1936),capturingHepworth and Ben Nicholson(1894–1982)in theirsharedstudio in Hampstead, London,will be presented inthe Project Space.Theseare among the most evocative studio imagestoemergein Britain during the 20th centuryand show the fascinating interrelation of their practicesat this time.
The Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen Exhibition:Hepworth in Colouris accompanied by a new catalogue, edited byDrAlexandra Gerstein,Curator of Sculpture and Decorative Artsat the CourtauldGalleryandDrStephen Feeke,independent art historianand Hepworth specialist,withcontributionsbyAlexandra Gerstein,Stephen Feeke,David Batchelor, Eleanor Clayton,Kirstie Dootsonand Kate Edmondson.
The exhibition’s Title Sponsor is Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen LLP. The exhibition’s Lead Supporter is the Huo Family Foundation, with Support from Art Mentor Foundation Lucerne.
Courtauld Memberscan enjoy the exhibition without the crowds at a preview on Thursday 11 June, 14:00 – 18:00,and alsoget free unlimited entry to all exhibitions, access to presale tickets, priority booking to selected events, advance notice of art history short courses, exclusive events, discounts and more.Join at courtauld.ac.uk/members
Late openings
DiscoverThe Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen Exhibition: Hepworth in Colourafter hours. The Gallery will open until 20:00 on Friday 12 June, 26 June, 31 July, and 4 September 2026.
Relaxed openings
Join us for relaxed openings ofThe Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen Exhibition: Hepworth in ColouronWednesday 1 July and Wednesday 19 August, at 10:00 or 10:15.Our relaxed exhibition openings includeadditionalsupport and facilities from our friendly team.
The Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen Exhibition:
Hepworth in Colour
12 June – 6 September 2026
Denise CoatesExhibitionGalleries, Floor 3
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Hepworth and Nicholson: The Hampstead Studio Photographs
6 June – 4 October 2026
Project Space, Floor 2
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Courtauld Gallery, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 0RN
Opening hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (last entry 17:15).
Temporary Exhibition tickets (including entry to our Permanent Collection and displays)from £18.Courtauld Membersand 18sandundergofree. Other concessions available.
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Notes to editors
About the Courtauld
The Courtauld works to advance how we see and understand the visual arts, as an internationally renowned centre for the teaching and research of art history and a major public gallery. Founded by collectors and philanthropists in 1932, the organisation has been at the forefront of the study of art ever since through advanced research and conservation practice, innovative teaching, the renowned collection and inspiring exhibitions of its gallery, and engaging and accessible activities, education and events.
The Courtauld Gallery cares for one of the greatest art collections in the UK, presenting these works to the public at the Courtauld Gallery in central London, as well as through loans and partnerships. The Gallery is most famous for its iconic Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masterpieces – such as Van Gogh’s Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear and Manet’s A Bar at ٳFolies-Bergère. It showcases these alongside an internationally renowned collection of works from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance through to the present day.
Academically, the Courtauld Institute is the largest community of art historians and conservators in the UK, teaching and conducting research on subjects ranging from creativity in late Antiquity to contemporary digital art forms – with an increasingly global focus. An independent college of the University of London, the Courtauld offers a range of degree programmes from BA to PhD in the History of Art, curating, art and business and the conservation of easel and wall paintings. Its alumni are leaders and innovators in the arts, culture and business worlds, helping to shape the global agenda for the arts and creative industries.
Founded on the belief that everyone should have the opportunity to engage with art, the Courtauld works to increase understanding of the role of art throughout history, across all societies and geographies, and to champion its importance in the present day. This could be through exhibitions offering a chance to look closely at world-famous works; events bringing art history research to new audiences; accessible short courses; digital engagement, innovative school, family, and community programmes; or taking a formal qualification. The Courtauld’s ambition is to transform access to art history education, ensuring as many people as possible canbenefitfrom the tools it offers to better understand the visual world around us.
The Courtauld is an exempt charity and relies on generous philanthropic support to achieve its mission of advancing the understanding of the visual arts of the past and present across the world through advanced research, innovative teaching, inspiring exhibitions, programmes and collections.
The collection cared for by the Courtauld Gallery is owned by the Samuel Courtauld Trust.
About Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen LLP
Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen LLP (JHAB) is an elite dispute resolution and advisory law firm based in London. Established by barristers Joe Hage and Graham Aaronson KC in 2013, the firm uniquely integrates ٳexpertiseof leading solicitors and barristers, as well as specialist accountants and data scientists, to provide comprehensive solutions to complex legal challenges. We have an international client base that ranges from ultra-high net worth individuals and trusts to publicly listed blue-chip companies, foreign governmententitiesand the world’s largest funds.
About Huo Family Foundation
The Huo Family Foundation is a grant-giving foundation based in London. Its mission is to support education,communitiesand the pursuit of knowledge. Its current areas of focus are education; the arts; and science. Through its donations, the Foundation hopes to improve the prospects of individuals, and to support the work of organisationsseekingto ensure a safe and successful future for all society.The Foundation aims to make art more accessible to all through its support for galleries,museumsand centres for the performing arts. For more information,