A new show opened at Falmouth Art Gallery on Friday evening, the collection of one remarkable man. Mattei Radev (1927 - 2009) was a refugee who fled his native Bulgaria as a stowaway on a cargo ship in 1950. Arriving in England, he later became one of the leading picture framers in London, mixing with artists, dealers and art critics.
In 1991, Radev was left a significant art collection by his friend Eardley Knollys, who had, in turn, inherited a large part of it from Eddie Sackville West, 5th Lord Sackville some years earlier.
The collection reflects each man's differing tastes: Knollys for French artists and Sackville-West for modern British pieces. Although Radev added works by Robert Medley, Duncan Grant and John Piper, his greatest gift was to keep the collection intact.
This exhibition brings together some of the finest artists of the 20th century including Georges Braque, Maurice Denis, Henri Gaudier-Brzeska, Ivon Hitchens, Jean Millet, Amedeo Modigliani, Ben Nicholson, Winifred Nicholson, Roderic O'Conor, Pablo Picasso, Lucien ****aro, Graham Sutherland, Keith Vaughan and Alfred Wallis.
A Framer's Collection - 9 Feb to 20 Apr 2013 - Monday to Saturday 10am - 5pm - Free admission
Falmouth Art Gallery, The Moor, Falmouth, TR11 2RT
In 1991, Radev was left a significant art collection by his friend Eardley Knollys, who had, in turn, inherited a large part of it from Eddie Sackville West, 5th Lord Sackville some years earlier.
The collection reflects each man's differing tastes: Knollys for French artists and Sackville-West for modern British pieces. Although Radev added works by Robert Medley, Duncan Grant and John Piper, his greatest gift was to keep the collection intact.
This exhibition brings together some of the finest artists of the 20th century including Georges Braque, Maurice Denis, Henri Gaudier-Brzeska, Ivon Hitchens, Jean Millet, Amedeo Modigliani, Ben Nicholson, Winifred Nicholson, Roderic O'Conor, Pablo Picasso, Lucien ****aro, Graham Sutherland, Keith Vaughan and Alfred Wallis.
A Framer's Collection - 9 Feb to 20 Apr 2013 - Monday to Saturday 10am - 5pm - Free admission
Falmouth Art Gallery, The Moor, Falmouth, TR11 2RT
