'Dartmoor China Clay' by Jean Jones

Artist Jean Jones was born in London in 1927 and had a deep connection with the South West throughout her life. Her family holidayed in the South Hams and then lived in Bideford after their home was damaged during a Second World War bombing raid.

Jones spent a year at St Martin’s School of Art but then switched to Girton College, Cambridge to read English. She did not return to painting for many years.

She married in 1949. Her in-laws lived in Devon so she and her husband John spent a great deal of time in the area before buying a property of their own in Shaugh Prior on the edge of Dartmoor.

John was an academic and it’s often said that Devon provided Jones with an escape from the intensity of academic life (their friends included novelists J. R. R. Tolkien, William Golding and Iris Murdoch). It also provided some relief from the anxiety, depression and bipolar disorder she experienced throughout her life.

‘Dartmoor China Clay’ is typical of her work – square in format with broad brushstrokes and a simple but impactful colour palette. You get the feeling she was painting something very familiar and much loved. She often painted her landscapes ‘en plein air’, or outdoors, in a similar way to the Newlyn School artists of the 1800s whose work we also have in our collections.

When Jones died in 2012 she’d produced more than 400 paintings. Despite selling work in London and Oxford during her career and having a solo show at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford in 1980, she’s been a little forgotten.

Thanks to the work of the Jean Jones Estate, The Brownston Gallery in Modbury and the inclusion of this painting in our 'People and Place' exhibition, we can help make sure she gets the recognition she deserves.

You can visit our 'People and Place: Art Collection Showcase' exhibition between 10am-5pm Tuesday to Sunday and selected bank holidays throughout 2023. Admission to the exhibition is free and there's no need to book in advance.