Biography
Rachel Nicholson was born in 1934, one of triplets, to the artists Ben Nicholson and Barbara Hepworth. The family moved from Hampstead to St Ives, Cornwall in 1939. Rachel had no formal training and started painting in her early 40s after her youngest child started school. She married the Alzheimer’s researcher Dr Michael Kidd; and has three children.
Rachel began her career with still life compositions, which developed over the years into a range of landscape images from Cumbria, Derbyshire and the West Country where she spent most of her childhood. The arrangement of objects, whether within her compositions or outside them, particularly in her home, is equally important. Rachel inherited her love of still-life objects from her farther Ben Nicholson, and he from his father William Nicholson.
'My Paintings are a way of trying to bring a sense of peace, and the hope that this will be extended to the viewer'
Nicholson has had many gallery and museum exhibitions, more recently at the Newlyn Art Gallery, The Stoneman Gallery and at Caroline Wiseman Modern and Contemporary. Numerous works by the artist have been sold at auction, including 'Still life with Spoon and Jug' sold at Christie's South Kensington 'Twentieth Century British Art' in 2002.
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2016|Rachel Nicholson, Newlyn Art Gallery, Cornwall
2014 |Retrospective, Caroline Wiseman at the London Art Fair, Bussiness Design Centre, Islington, London
2013 |Rachel Nicholson, Stoneman Gallery, Cornwall UK
2006 |Caroline Wiseman Modern Art
2001|Lynne Strover Gallery, Cambridgeshire
2000|Montpelier Sandelson, London
1997|Montpelier Sandelson, London
1994|Montpelier Studio, London
1991|Montpelier Studio, London
1990|Takanawa Gallery, Tokyo
1988|Montpelier Studio, London
1985|Montpelier Studio, London
1982|Montpelier Studio, London
1980|Rachel Nicholson Dartington Years 1945 - 1952, Dartington Gallery
1980|First London Solo, Montpelier Studio
1979|First Solo Show at Field Gallery, Farnsfield Nottinghamshire
Selected Group Exhibitions
2016 |Breon O'Casey & Rachel Nicholson, Stoneman Gallery, Madron, Cornwall
2015|Winter Print Fair, The Exchange, Penzance, Cornwall
2014|Stoneman Gallery, London
2013|Business Centre, Islington, London
2012|Royal College of Art, Kensington, London
2007|Family Garden Exhibition, Elizabeth Page Smith Gallery, Venice, California, USA
2006|Art Miami Art Fair USA (via Lemon Street Gallery)
2006|Thompson's, Marylebone
2006|Lemon Street Gallery, Truro
2005|London Arts Fair
2005|Caroline Wiseman Modern Art - St Ives to Newlyn
2005|Show tour to Eton College
2005|Glyndebourne Gallery
2005|Fine Art Design and Antiques, Olympia
2005|Belgrave Gallery
2005|Thompsons's, The City Gallery, London
2004|New Academy Gallery, 'Still Life'
2004| Art London
2004| British Arts Fair
2004|Caroline Wiseman Modern Art, Nicholsons: A Vital Simplicity; Four Generations of the Nicholson Family.
2004|Thompson's, The City Gallery, London
2003|Caroline Wiseman Modern Art, Principal Artist, London
2003|Lynne Strover Gallery, Cambridgeshire
2003|British Art Fair, Commonwealth Institute
2003|Lemon Street Gallery, Truro, Cornwall
2000-05|Belgrave Gallery, St Ives, Cornwall
2000-2004|Thompson's, Marylebone, London
1998-1999|Tate Gallery St Ives, Cornwall
1998-99|Tate Gallery St Ives - Century of Images
1997-98|20th Century British Art Fair
1997|New Academy Gallery
1996|Dartington Arts Gallery
1995|New Academy Gallery, Cornwall
1993|New Academy Gallery, Curwen Chilford Prints
1993-98 Art Fair Business Centre, Islington, London
1989|City Gallery, Leicester
1983|Crane Kalman - The Nicholsons
1981- 83|Bath Contemporary Arts Fair
1982|Beaux Arts, Bath - Two Generations
1981|Milton Keynes
1976-1999|Wills Lane Gallery St Ives, Cornwall UK
