Dame Barbara Hepworth sculpture worth £3.5 million at risk of leaving UK

A sculpture by Dame Barbara Hepworth worthy £3.5 cardinal has been fixed a impermanent export barroom to forestall it from leaving the UK.

Sculpture With Colour (Oval Form) Pale Blue And Red, created successful the 1940s, was auctioned by Christie’s, successful March, for millions of pounds.

A committee, serviced by Arts Council England (ACE), has made the proposal for an export barroom to let clip for a UK assemblage oregon instauration to get the sculpture.

The autarkic assemblage said the artwork has an “outstanding transportation with our past and nationalist life”, and besides holds “outstanding aesthetic importance”, and “outstanding value to the survey of Dame Barbara Hepworth’s moving signifier and the improvement of her work”.

The sculpture is made of painted wood and is portion of a larger bid successful Dame Barbara’s oeuvre, which she developed passim the Second World War aft she settled with her household successful St Ives, Cornwall.

Arts Minister Sir Chris Bryant said: “Dame Barbara Hepworth was a phenomenal creator genius, who volition proceed to animate aboriginal generations with her unsocial genre defining sculptures, which stay arsenic almighty and engaging present arsenic during her lifetime.

“Hepworth was influenced by her surroundings and this sculpture is simply a beauteous penetration into her caller beingness successful St Ives aft the outbreak of the Second World War.

“I anticipation a UK purchaser tin beryllium recovered for this sculpture truthful the British nationalist tin proceed to larn and prosecute with 1 our astir important artists for generations to come.”

Stuart Lochhead, from the Reviewing Committee On The Export Of Works Of Art And Objects Of Cultural Interest (RCEWA), added: “Sculpture with Colour (Oval Form) Pale Blue and Red embodies the Cornish sky, oversea and rugged coastline, successful which she lived and which influenced her truthful deeply.

I anticipation a UK purchaser tin beryllium recovered for this sculpture truthful the British nationalist tin proceed to larn and prosecute with 1 our astir important artists for generations to come.

Arts Minister, Sir Chris Bryant

“One of lone a fistful of stringed and coloured sculptures she produced during this period, it marks a important improvement successful her practice, bridging her pre-and post-war creator developments.

“As such, this beauteous and immensely informative enactment by 1 of Britain’s top artists indispensable beryllium saved for the nation.”

The determination connected the export licence exertion for the sculpture volition beryllium deferred and astatine the extremity of the archetypal deferral play owners volition person a information play of 15 concern days to see immoderate offers to acquisition the sculpture astatine the recommended terms of £3,652,180.63 (plus VAT of £129,800).

Dame Barbara was 1 of the starring British artists of the 20th century.

Her Sculpture With Colour (Oval Form) Pale Blue And Red has been exhibited astatine galleries crossed the UK, including Tate Britain, and Christie’s antecedently auctioned the sculpture successful 1998 and 2008.