Lawrie Baldwyn: Symphony of Colour

Saturday 30th March – Tuesday 30th April

You are warmly invited to join Lawrie and ourselves for an opening drinks reception from 5pm Saturday 30th April

Doone Valley Gallery are delighted to present an exhibition of paintings by Lawrie Baldwyn.

Born in London in 1942, Lawrie Baldwyn is a British artist currently residing on the edge of Exmoor National Park and in Mortagua, Portugal.

Lawrie’s artistic journey began at the Ealing School of Art, where he studied from 1958 to 1963. Lawrie’s first exhibitions were at the Artists International Association in 1961 and 1962 at their Lisle Street venue in Soho, London. Also in 1962 Lawrie was included in Young Contemporaries at the RBA Galleries, an important exhibition that promoted the best young talents in contemporary British painting. The exhibition, largely run by students, was traditionally a spontaneous and somewhat chaotic event, often lacking in funding and organization. Nevertheless, it managed to attract considerable attention. The 1962 exhibition, served as an early platform for British Pop Art. Amongst the fellow exhibitors were Peter Blake, David Hockney, Frank Bowling, Derek Boshier, Patrick Procktor and R. B. Kitaj. The review of the exhibition in The Times observed, ‘if this year’s brilliant “Young Contemporaries” exhibition is anything to go by, British art is in for a healthy, lively period. The exhibition (particularly the far room) fairly bubbles with bright ideas and visual excitement, which is more important than the fact that some of the talent may prove to be a flash in the pan. Derivative influences abound, but that, too, is irrelevant; one does not ask an apprentice artist to spring fully armed from the head of Zeus but only to be discerning in his choice of exemplars and intelligent in his use of them. Intelligence of this kind is noticeable throughout the exhibition, and it is interesting to see in what directions it is currently aimed’.

The Times - Tuesday 13th February 1962

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The Times - Tuesday 13th February 1962

Lawrie was also included in the 1963 Young Contemporaries exhibition as well as that year’s touring exhibition which visited Cambridge Art Gallery, Ferens Art Gallery, Midland Group Gallery, Towner Art Gallery, Bradford Art Gallery.

Young-Contemporaries-63-touring

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Young Contemporaries 1963 Touring Exhibition Catalogue Cover

Lawrie subsequently worked for Harkers Studios, London. Painting scenery for opera and theatre productions, including the Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne, Welsh National Opera and various west end productions. Between 1965-1967 Lawrie shared his expertise teaching drawing at Ealing School of Art.

In 1976 Lawrie was shortlisted for the prestigious John Moores Painting Prize held at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool. His painting Nebeul Kasr took third place, with a £2000 prize. In second place was Sir Howard Hodgkin (1932-2017) with Cafeteria at the Grand Palais, and the first place prize was awarded to John Walker (b.1939) for Juggernaut with Plume for P. Neruda.

Nebeul Kasr was later purchased by The Atkinson Art Gallery in Southport.

Other group shows included two at Scribes Cellar in 1980 and 1981, before a major solo exhibition at the Chenil Gallery in Chelsea in 1982.

After a hiatus of three decades, Lawrie resumed exhibiting in 2011, focusing on local venues and marking a new chapter in his artistic journey.