Ben Nicholson

1894–1982

Ben Nicholson was a Modernist painter born in London to parents who were also artists. He is one of the best British artists.

He spent some time in Paris and was inspired by Cubism.

He turned the things around him into simple flat shapes like squares, triangles and circles.

He spent a long time living in St Ives in Cornwall and created many paintings of the towns of Cornwall and turned these into simple drawings and paintings of shapes. However, you can often still see the buildings and boats.

Have a look at the images below.

Can you see buildings and boats in any of them?

Which ones do you prefer and can you identify the abstract pieces?

Art Activity:

You will need paper, a pencil and paints (acrylic or watercolours).

Step 1:

Look at a view of some houses. You could do this from your window, by going outside or by looking at a photograph.

Step 2:

Start drawing the buildings using simple lines and shapes. Some of the lines and shapes can overlap.

Step 3:

Start painting the shapes using blocks of colour in each shape.