Rose Wylie

Surprising exhibition at the Royal Academy on the art of Rose Wylie.

From the pictures I'd seen in the press I'd assumed the work would look quite flat and cartoon like but in the flesh it was quite textured and the explanations made me realise it was a lot more nuanced that I'd assumed. I was also surprised at how huge a lot of the pictures were.

The show was arranged in themes from her work influenced by being a child in the Second World War through to that which has been inspired by newspapers and current cultural themes.

I admit the audience were all of a certain age (mine!) and mainly female and from conversations around me I realised they were engaging with the work and getting a lot from it.

I am going to hear Wylie speak in a few weeks and I am looking forward to hearing more from her.

Closed 18 April 2026


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