Press Release For immediate use Monday 9 March 2009
Jacob Epstein Illustrations to the Old Testament 28 February – 31 May 2009 The New Art Gallery Walsall The New Art Gallery Walsall will be exhibiting a selection of dramatic and striking watercolours and drawings engaging with Epstein’s unusual visionary interpretation of the Old Testament from the 28 February – 31 May 2009. The artist and sculptor became completely absorbed in the ‘whole new world passing before him’ and exhibited fifty four illustrations at the Redfern galleries in London in 1932. Cyril Connolly, Architectural Review said at the time ‘No one should miss this exhibition of beauty, of alien splendour – this story told by these fierce watercolours of the chequered dynasty of Jesse....’. Despite the works selling well the exhibition created a furore in a society which saw them in the light of the racial prejudices of the period. For Jacob Epstein, the son of an Orthodox Jewish family, the Torah and the five Books of Moses had been braided into his childhood and daily life through Hebrew classes and at the synagogue. Although he had long dismissed organised religion from his life, his work had always related to the great basic concerns of humanity such as birth, death, fertility, sexuality, procreation and their relationship to the more spiritual and transcendental aspects of religion. The Old Testament with its grand sweeping themes, ethical issues and characters fascinated him but in the growing political arena of the 1930’s most people fastened upon the racial elements of his work Jo Digger, Collections Curator said “Most of the art works in this exhibition have not been displayed since Epstein first exhibited them in his 'Illustrations to the Old Testament' exhibition of 1932. They are still as fresh and vibrant today as they
were when he made and exhibited them, despite some of them being caught in a bombing raid during WWII. These works were bought from Epstein by a private collector whose family has just given them to Walsall as a long term loan. The original exhibition created a profound impression on people in a way which I believe these works still manage to do today”. Jacob Epstein was always regarded as something of an outsider to the mainstream art world; his work continuously shocked and even disgusted many people. Born in the Jewish Ghetto of Lower East Side, New York in 1880 to Polish immigrant parents, he moved to England and became a naturalised UK citizen in 1910. He continued to be seen by many as an ‘alien’ to British art and culture for most of his life, subject to countless attacks regarding his religious and cultural background. Notes to editor Photocall at 11am Tuesday 10 March with a Gallery Assistant Interviews For interviews with Collections Curator, Jo Digger and further information, contact Hollie Latham, Marketing and Development Manager on 01922 654402, email lathamh@walsall.gov.uk The New Art Gallery Walsall is run and maintained by Walsall Council and also receives significant financial support from Arts Council England. The gallery is open Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday 11am to 4pm. Admission is free. For more information visit the gallery website thenewartgallerywalsall.org.uk End of all