Barbara Hepworth's sculpture records comprising photographs and notes compiled under the sculptor's supervision

In the 1940s Hepworth began to systematically catalogue her work until her death in 1975. These record books were started in the 1960s and give a complete record of her work. The record books also contain details of provenance, literature and exhibition history for each work. These books do not contain any information about any of the artworks post 1975.

Barbara Hepworth was born in Wakefield, Yorkshire in 1903. She studied at Leeds College of Art in 1921 and at the RCA, 1921-24. In 1924-25 she lived in Italy, and married fellow sculptor, John Skeaping. In 1932 and 1933 she and Ben Nicholson (who then became her second husband) visited Picasso, Braque, Mondrian, Arp and Brancusi. She joined Abstraction-Création in 1933, was a member of Unit One and befriended Gabo when she and Nicholson moved to St. Ives at the outbreak of the Second World War. During the early part of the war she concentrated on drawing, using some colour. In 1948 she exhibited paintings at Reid & Lefevre, carried out with a mixture of pencil and oil paint, of surgical operations she had observed. Celebrated as a sculptor, she was nevertheless influential on the work of a number of painters and, through her commitment to close contacts with contemporary European artists, she influenced the course of art in general in Britain. [For a more detailed biography see 'Barbara Hepworth A Retrospective' cited above, pp. 157-160].

The material has been arranged chronologically from 7247/1 to 7247/45.

OPEN

Some volumes are closed under the Data Protection Act. Please see info for each specific volume.

Microfiche copies

Volumes 1-43 presented by Barbara Hepworth, December 1972 and Volumes 44-45 presented by her Executors, November 1977.