MODERN ART

MODERN ART GALLERY

ART AFTER 1900, GALLERY 62, LEVEL 3
The Robert and Rena Lewin Gallery

The paintings and sculptures in this gallery give a taste of the diversity of 20th-century art: from expressive paintings of human figures, to abstracted still lifes, to entirely abstract compositions of colours and forms.

Since 1900, European artists have challenged the idea that creating ‘realistic’, figurative art was the ultimate achievement. Through a series of radical art movements, they redefined the concept of art, and introduced new materials and techniques.

Featured artists such as Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Barbara Hepworth, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso pushed artistic boundaries in many ways, taking inspiration from philosophy, psychology, literature, music, and traditions beyond Europe and North America.

Modern and contemporary ceramics, and silver work, are displayed in the corridor outside the gallery as well as the IN FOCUS series.

Please note no photography is allowed in the gallery.

IN FOCUS

The IN FOCUS series in and outside this gallery presents rotations of special loans and works from the Ashmolean’s collections for short periods, keeping the gallery fresh for regular visitors.

Currently, two Terra Foundation artworks are on show: 'Torso in Space' by Alexander Archipenko and 'Night Nude' by Milton Avery. In the central space of the gallery, you'll discover a small bronze sculpture 'Fragment Figure' by Henry Moore, another temporary display.

Outside the gallery, by the Chantrey Wall staircase, there are four prints and drawings by Danish-British artist Peter Hedegaard, exploring colour and composition.

River form (detail)

Barbara Hepworth, 1965, American walnut © image Ashmolean Museum object © Barbara Hepworth © Bowness
WA2023.180

Murnau-Staffelsee I

Wassily Kandinsky, 1908, oil on paper laid on board © Ashmolean Museum
WA1997.33

Cows at Cookham (detail)

Stanley Spencer, 1936, oil on canvas. WA1968.27
The Estate of the Artist. All Rights Reserved 2023/ Bridgeman Images

Les Sables d'Olonne (detail)

Albert Marquet, 1921, oil on canvas © Ashmolean Museum
WA2005.192

IN FOCUS Terra Foundation display

Left: Torso in Space, Alexander Archipenko, 1952, screenprint with lithograph and embossing on cream wove paper © Estate of Alexander Archipenko; Artists’ Rights Society, New York

Right: Night Nude, Milton Avery, 1953, colour woodcut with blue ink over black ink on cream Japanese paper © The Milton Avery Rights Trust; Artists’ Rights Society, New York

Nude on a Chaise-Longue (detail)

Henri Matisse, 1919, oil on canvas © Ashmolean Museum
WA1940.1.11

Graded Steps [purple to red] [dark]

Peter Hedegaard, 1973, gouache on thick paper © The Estate of Peter Hedegaard, courtesy Rocket Gallery, London / © Ashmolean Museum WA2025.5

The Ashmolean holds the largest collection of Hedegaard's works worldwide, thanks to a recent donation by the artist’s widow Isolde, who printed the screenprints.

About the Terra Foundation

In 2022, the Terra Foundation for American Art made an extraordinarily generous, four-year loan to the Ashmolean of 37 important American prints of the late-19th and 20th centuries.

The loan, part of the Terra Collection-in-Residence programme, complements the Museum’s existing holdings of American art and has led to new university teaching and research. The two prints currently on display were recently the subject of research by two undergraduate interns Elizabeth Tiskina and Isobel Paxton.

Want to view the other galleries on the third floor?

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WESTERN ART DEPARTMENT

Outstanding collections of European fine and decorative arts from the Renaissance to the present day. They include Old Master and later paintings, drawings, watercolours, and prints; English and continental ceramics, sculpture, silver, watches, rings and musical instruments.

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