Paul Coldwell's Temporarily Accessioned exhibition set to arrive in The Beaney's Front Room

The Beaney is pleased to be exhibiting significant recent work from artist Paul Coldwell in The Front Room, running from Tuesday 18 May to Sunday 27 June 2021. Paul has been working closely with the Freud Museums in both London and Vienna to explore ideas of presence and absence, supported by Arts Council England.

The exhibition runs in parallel to the Saint Thomas Becket – World Celebrity Healer Special Exhibition, showing from Saturday 29 May to Sunday 4 July. There are overlapping themes with, and links to, the Becket exhibition including the concept of exile (Becket to France in 1164 and Freud to London in 1938), objects and loss, pilgrims’ badges and migration.

The work shown will include a full size x-ray print of Freud’s Coat, made with the help of the National Gallery, London alongside an artists book publication which documented the process and performance. In keeping with the theme of exile, Paul also produced three wooden travelling cabinets, one of which is a travelling case, as if an overnight bag for Freud on his journey of exile.

Paul Russell, Programming Officer at The Beaney said “We are delighted to be reopening with this amazing and thoughtful show by Paul Coldwell. We are grateful that Paul has been flexible and allowed us to present his work a year later than originally scheduled. 

I’m personally really looking forward to seeing the work in several of our gallery spaces, particularly the ghostly reconstructed objects from Freud’s desk. Some of the themes, such as the concepts of exile, objects and loss, also resonate with our Saint Thomas Becket exhibition that’s running from 29 May in our Special Exhibition Gallery and is well-worth a visit too.”

Entry to the exhibition is free, with donations encouraged. Find out more about the exhibition.

Paul Coldwell is an artist and Professor in Fine Art at the University of the Arts London. He has strong connections with Kent, having been brought up and attended school in Rochester, before studying at Canterbury College of Art in the early 1970’s. The University of Kent staged a survey of his work in 2013.  

His practice includes prints, book works, sculptures and installations. He writes regularly on contemporary printmaking, is on the editorial board of the journal Print Quarterly and has curated a number of exhibitions including Morandi Legacy;Influences on British Art. He has exhibited widely, his work is held in numerous public collections, including Tate, Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A), British Museum and Arts Council of England. 

A selection of this work has been previously shown in a two-person exhibition at the Sigmund Freud Museum Vienna Setting Memory (2016) curated by Monika Pessler featuring Coldwell’s work alongside Bettina von Zwehl and then in a solo exhibition Temporarily accessioned; Freud’s Coat re-visited (2017) at the Freud Museum London.  

Paul Coldwell would like to acknowledge the generous support of Arts Council England, his collaborations with the Freud museums in Vienna and London in creating the work and University of the Arts London.

For further press information and images please contact Holly Buggins-Eaves, Marketing and Audience Development Manager, The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge: Holly.Buggins-Eaves@canterbury.gov.uk