The RWA museum in Bristol presents “Living Lines,” a major retrospective dedicated to Paule Vézelay in a long-overdue celebration of one of Britain’s pioneering artists, per artnet.com. Running from January 25 to April 27, 2025, the exhibition shines a spotlight on the life and work of a woman who defied conventions and embraced abstraction at a time when few British artists dared to do so.
Born Marjorie Watson-Williams in Bristol in 1892, Vézelay reinvented herself in the 1920s after moving to Paris, adopting a French name and immersing herself in the avant-garde circles that included luminaries like Sophie Taeuber-Arp, Jean Arp and Wassily Kandinsky. Her lyrical, biomorphic compositions stood in stark contrast to the angular, Cubist-inspired works of her British contemporaries, pre-empting the organic forms later popularised by Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth.
Despite her groundbreaking contributions, Vézelay’s legacy has been overshadowed by her reluctance to commercialise her art. As her niece Sally Jarman notes in the exhibition catalogue, Vézelay saw her works as “her own children,” preserving them with a “dignified, unworldly integrity.” This exhibition aims to rectify that oversight, showcasing her innovative “Lines in Space” series, textile works, and paintings that capture the essence of movement and life.
“Living Lines” not only honours Vézelay’s artistic vision but also her resilience. Forced to return to England during WWII, she continued to create in relative obscurity, maintaining the innovative spirit of 1930s Paris in her London studio. Now, nearly four decades after her death, the world is finally ready to celebrate Paule Vézelay—a true pioneer of abstraction.
- Image: Paule Vézelay in the 1930s/© Estate of Paule Vézelay
