Following extensive ongoing research toenhancethe representation of women artists across Britishart history, Tate has acquiredararepainting,Portrait of an Unknown Lady1650-5byJoan Carlile, thoughttobethe first woman in Britainto work as a professional portrait painter in oil. The portraitis one of only a small number of surviving works known to be by the artist. This new acquisition is the earliest work by a woman artist to enter thecollection.
The work is one of a group of major acquisitions of British art for ղٱ’s collection announcedtoday.
An exceptional work of early British Impressionism byWilliam Stott of Oldham, LePasseur(The Ferry)1882has been acquiredwith funds provided by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Art Fund and TheHintzeFamily Charitable Foundation.Stottwas a central figure in the early phase of British Impressionism and this work is widely regarded as the crowning achievement of his career.The paintingwillbe displayed at Tate Britain in April 2017 and will thentour to three UK-partner galleries:Gallery Oldham, Aberdeen Art Gallery and Southampton City Art Gallery, thanks to funding from the HLF and ArtFund.
SirJoshua Reynolds’sglamorous,swaggering full-length portraitFrederick Howard, 5th Earl of Carlisle 1769has been acquired thanks tothe acceptance in lieu schemeadministered byArts Council England andhastransformed ղٱ’s holdings of this artist.
British artistMarkWallingerhas generouslygiftedState Britain2007to Tate. The work was created for theTate Britain Commission series supported by Sotheby’s. It is one of the most politically charged works of recent years and showsa reconstructionof the Parliament Square peace campaign by the late BrianHaw.
Tate has also acquiredanother work originally devised in response to theDuveengalleries at Tate Britain,War Damaged Musical Instruments2015byTurner Prize winner SusanPhilipsz, shownlast year as part of 14-18 NOW, the UK’s arts programme for the First World Warcentenary.
Tate has also acquired an outstandingwatercolour by JamesTissot, who worked in Britain, The Wounded Soldier 1870,depictinga young manwoundedin the Franco Prussian war.This workwillbeon displayinTate Britain’sThe EYExhibition: Impressionists in Londonin autumn 2017 alongside works byother French artists who sought refuge in London during and after theconflict.
DerekJarman’sBlue1993 joins ղٱ’s growing collection of artists’ film.The work, which wascompleted only a few months before this death, will be shown in spring 2017 to coincide with theQueer British Artexhibition at Tate Britain, which will mark the fiftieth anniversary of the decriminalisation of male homosexuality in England andWales.
Further modern and contemporary British acquisitions which have enhanced the collection this year include: one of Peter Lanyon’s most significant paintings,WestPenwith1949; two plaster reliefs by EduardoPaolozzifrom the estate of Eugene and Penelope Rosenberg;Helen Marten’sGuild of Pharmacists2014; Bob and Roberta Smith’sLetter to Michael Gove2015;and AntonyGormley’slarge installation workThe Model Room2006-12 which comprises 89 sculptural models and twelvedrawings.
In 2017, Tate Britain will stage major solo exhibitions for two of the UK’s most celebrated living artists.The most extensive exhibition of DavidHockney’swork ever held will open in February 2017, spanning six decades of his career and bringing togethericonic paintings withworks never before seen in public.This will be followed in September 2017 by a mid-career retrospective ofRachelWhiteread,one of the most respected sculptors workingtoday.
It was also announced todaythatCerithWynEvans will undertake the Tate Britain Commission 2017 for the Duveengalleries.
Director of Tate Britain, AlexFarquharson said:“We have the greatest collection of British art in the world and it gets better every year.As our latest acquisitions and exhibitions revealwe can look at the most powerful, topical and relevant issues in society from both historic and contemporary perspectives.Tate Britainis where we can tell an unending story of British artboth by giving British artists a platform on the world stageand byshowing howinternationalartistshave played theirpart inour own arthistory.”
For press information please contactRuth Findlay orDuncan Holden in Tate Press Office on020 7887 8730.
Email pressoffice@tate.org.uk. For high-resolution images visit tate.org.uk/press
Image credit: Joan Carlile - Portrait of an Unknown Lady,1650-5