Ben Nicholson

To end the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the gallery, we are delighted to introduce a selection of works by the artists that helped shaping its success.

In 1969 Bernard Jacobson opened his first London gallery – a fourth-floor walk-up on Mount Street, Mayfair, dealing in prints by international stars, including Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg, as well as publishing prints by leading British artists including Malcolm Morley and Robyn Denny. Printmaking fit the radical, pop sensibility of the time, and Jacobson was part of that heady explosion of interest in the medium. As the gallery approaches its half century in 2019, it is fitting that this landmark year opens with an ambitious two-part exhibition exploring Jacobson's personal and abiding love of prints and some of the remarkable works published by the gallery during an eventful 50 years in the business.

The works on display at Bernard Jacobson Gallery date from throughout Nicholson’s distinguished career and include his 1930s and 1940s geometric abstract paintings, paintings on canvas and board from the 1950s, his subsequent reliefs, and his last works in oil and felt tip.

The works on display at Bernard Jacobson Gallery date from across Ben Nicholson's distinguished career and range from his fully abstract white reliefs to his later pencil drawings of architectural ruins. While he is often associated with his more abstract works, the current exhibition builds upon the success of the Tate's current touring exhibition in presenting a more rounded view of Nicholson's oeuvre.

Ben Nicholson is undoubtedly one of the most important figures in the development of British abstraction. This exhibition will include paintings and drawings from all periods of his life, starting with the drawing Cafe Robinson, St Remy from the early thirties, going through to a White Relief from 1936 and then the hard edged geometrical paintings of the early forties.