Discover the internationally important work of Paule Vézelay, a key figure of 20th-century British abstract art. Her vivid explorations of colour and line fill this retrospective exhibition at the RWA - the largest solo show of Vézelay's work in over 40 years. 

A ticket for this exhibition also gives you entry into RWA Biennial Open 2025: Paper Works. Day tickets and concessions available from the Welcome Desk on the day of your visit.  Annual Art Passes can be bought in advance or on the day, online and in person. 

Vézelay (née Marjorie Watson-Williams; 1892–1984) was born in Bristol and played a central role in the Parisian avant-garde of the 1920s and '30s. The exhibition also includes sculptures by Alexander Calder and Marlow Moss, Vézelay's friends and fellow artists. Her circle in Paris included Hans and Sophie Taueber-Arp, Andre Masson and other leading artists and members of the Surrealist and Abstraction-Creation groups.

On display are more than 60 works including paintings, prints, sculptures and textiles, in addition to archive items such as photographs and personal letters. The exhibition spans Vézelay's career, from her early interest in Bristol's theatre scene to her breakthrough into abstract art in Paris and later success as a textile designer.

The exhibition is curated by Simon Grant, and includes loaned works from the Estate of Paule Vézelay, Tate, Leeds Museums, England & Co., University of Bristol Theatre Collection, and private collectors. 
 
It is accompanied by the first major publication on Vézelay, Paule Vézelay: Living Lines, edited by Simon Grant and featuring essays by Professor Sarah Wilson, Gemma Brace, and Helen Janecek. Published by Lund Humphries, the book will be available for pre-order and sale from the RWA.

The exhibition will tour to Towner Eastbourne from mid-May to August 2025.

Catalogue supported by 

Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art

RELATED EVENTS

Archive BBC documentary Paule Vezelay interviewed by Germaine Greer.

RWA Friends talk with Simon Grant: 4 December 2024

Spring After Hours: Thursday 6 March 2025

Please check back for further events in 2025