Tirzah Garwood: Beyond Ravilious

A Journey Through the Playful Imagination of an Overlooked Artist

Written by Madeleine Davies

Venturing on through the grey, frosty days of January it is not hard to drift away in anticipation of brighter skies, eagerly awaiting the first signs of Spring. Tirzah Garwood: Beyond Ravilious at Dulwich Picture Gallery embodies exactly that feeling, encompassing scenes of gardens and fields in bloom. Her first major retrospective, the exhibition displays Garwood's many practices, from printing and textiles to oil painting, transporting us to the often chimerical imagination of the artist.  

Tirzah Garwood, Springtime of Flight, Oil on Canvas, 1950, Private collection

Commencing with Garwood's wood prints, the exhibition begins with the artist's earlier works to introduce

her relationship with Eric Ravilious. Attending The Eastbourne School of Art as an evening student, Ravilious taught Garwood wood engraving. The pair would later marry and form a family. Garwood's printmaking takes a humorous approach, varying in depictions of the comfort of the home to the busy streets of London. Whilst monochrome, the prints share the liveliness of the yearly cyclical change found in her vibrant oil paintings. Commissioned to design calendars, Garwood takes us through the seasons, emphasising the joy of the outdoors during the warmer months, and the reluctance to leave one's bed during the depths of winter.

Tirzah Garwood, Relations Group: The Crocodile; The Wife; The Dog Show; The Cousin; The Grandmother; The Vegetable Garden, Wood Engravings, 1929, Private Collection

  A closer look at many of the works on display and you will meet the gaze of a certain figure. In pursuing her playful approach, Garwood often incorporated herself into these scenes, creating discreet self portraits. In the wood engravings, she is the woman comfortable in bed, yawning and stretching. Sat in the train carriage she locks eyes with the viewer, taking little notice of dosing fellow passengers, or the view through the window. Perhaps less recognisable, Garwood also metamorphoses into more dream-like compositions. Fascinated by doll houses, Garwood played with scale and often depicted toys in her paintings. In The Spanish Lady, Garwood appears in the form of a figurative Victorian water bottle. Fascinated by these Victorian objects, it appears Garwood developed these scenes in her scrapbooks, collaging together backdrops of forests with cut outs of toy soldiers.

Left: Tirzah Garwood, The Spanish Lady, Oil on Canvas, 1950, Private Collection

Right: Tirzah Garwood, Patchwork quilt made for Peggy Angus, Patchwork Quilt, c.1940, Private Collection

Garwood's taste for collage did not only appear in her scrapbooking process but also in her textiles. Created for close friend and fellow artist Peggy Angus, the vibrant red quilt demonstrates Garwood's extensive imagination in repurposing damaged fabrics. Taking on a geometric pattern, strips are pieced together, mirroring the form of stars or leaves that appear in her oil paintings. The broad array of creative practices on display not only outlines Garwood's diverse skill set but also reflects the divergences her practice took as a mother and wife after moving to Great Bardfield, Essex. During this period, Garwood's opportunity to create art dwindled, responsible for running a household and supporting her husband's work. Despite scarce time, Garwood was able to express her creativity in designing pattered and marbled papers from which she earned a living, evoking a similar whimsical feeling exuded across the exhibition.

I am envious of Garwood's ability to transport herself to these dream-like worlds through her imaginative artworks. I might just take a second glance the next time I pass a seemingly inanimate object and pay attention to curious eyes looking back at me. 

Tirzah Garwood: Beyond Ravilious is on display until 26 May 2025.