“Lenore Tawney: Part One”, the first of two solo exhibitions of the pioneering textile artist’s work at Alison Jacques, London

Lenore Tawney: Part 1, Alison Jacques, London, 2021. Courtesy of The Lenore G. Tawney Foundation, New York, and Alison Jacques, London © Lenore G. Tawney Foundation

Part one, on view throughout Frieze London, focuses on Tawney’s early work and material innovations; part two, following in November, will feature rarely seen late work and an installation from the iconic ‘Cloud’ series. The exhibitions, Tawney’s first in the UK, follow a major four-part survey at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Wisconsin (2019).

Tawney was born in Lorain in 1907 and raised on the banks of Lake Erie. In 1957, she left Chicago, her adopted home of 30 years, for New York in the search of ‘a barer life, closer to reality, without all the things that clutter and fill our lives.’ While it took Tawney 50 years to earnestly commit to her artistic practice, her woven negotiations of light, weight and spirit, which manifested as weavings and works on paper, as well as collages, mail art and even clothing, would establish her as a central figure in the celebrated fibre art movement of the 1960s.

On view now until 6th of October at Alison Jacques
16–18 Berners Street London W1T 3LN


Courtesy of The Lenore G. Tawney Foundation, New York, and Alison Jacques, London ©️ Lenore G. Tawney Foundation

Lenore Tawney: Part 1, Alison Jacques, London, 2021. Courtesy of The Lenore G. Tawney Foundation, New York, and Alison Jacques, London © Lenore G. Tawney Foundation