Ben Nicholson: Landscape into Abstraction, Connaught Brown

One of the 20^th century’s most revered artists, Ben Nicholson began his career as a painter of still life and landscapes. This May, Mayfair gallery Connaught Brown traces the development of his practice and drastic shift towards abstraction, considering his importance in the wider context of 20^th century modernism.
Ben Nicholson | sculpture and style
An extensive traveller, frequent encounters with leading artists such as Mondrian, Braque and Brancusi in the 1930s prompted Nicholson’s stark deviation from naturalism. He joined the ‘Abstraction-Creation’ group in 1933 alongside prominent avant-garde artists Jean Hélion, Auguste Herbin and Jean Arp. Bringing a fresh approach to the abstraction of landscapes, Nicholson began to work with everyday materials, simplifying colour and form, and employing tools such as razor blades and chisels to carve directly into the surface of his work.
Connaught Brown gallery show
Highlights of the exhibition include Painting, 1939 - a piece showcasing Nicholson’s close relationship with Mondrian. Working in neighbouring London studios at the time, both artists explored the complex relationship between abstraction and representation to different ends.
Though a small display, this show visually promises to pack a real punch, and is well worth a visit if you are taking a look at the contemporary shows in Mayfair.