The art of the Newlyn School graces the walls of major public Art Galleries across the world, yet ever since the term was first used, there has been confusion about what it means. This lavishly illustrated new book explores the myths and realities of this important British art movement, celebrating the unique and vital role played by the artists associated with it, while exploring its national and international context.

The story begins in the 1880s, when the Cornish fishing village of Newlyn became a mecca for a group of realist painters, who captured the lives of the local community in their beautiful and moving paintings. The book explores the shared values and qualities of the founding artists, including the ‘father of the Newlyn School’ Stanhope Forbes and his talented wife Elizabeth (nee Armstrong), along with a host of their fellow artists, such as Frank Bramley, Walter Langley, Albert Chevallier Tayler and Henry Scott Tuke, while also revealing the characters and concerns of some of the real-life villagers they depicted.

As the twentieth century loomed, the creation of a Newlyn School of Painting sparked a second flowering of the colony, drawn to this still vibrant artistic hub, and to West Cornwall’s mild climate and sparkling light. The School not only introduced its talented students, including Dod and Ernest Procter, but also re-energised the artists already resident, such as SJ ‘Lamorna’ Birch and Harold Harvey, and in turn drew in established names, most notably Dame Laura Knight and Alfred Munnings.

Filled with sumptuous images by these much-loved artists, drawn mainly from the extensive holdings Penlee House Gallery and Museum and the Bowerman Collection, The Art of the Newlyn School explores, defines and celebrates this significant chapter in the history of British art, and the artists who depicted the life and light of Cornwall with a painterly language that still speaks to us today.