Anthony Lawrence Retrospective At Palais Des Vaches: A Hidden Genius Illuminated

Discover the Genius of Anthony Lawrence at Palais des Vaches. The first major UK retrospective of Anthony Lawrence (1951–2022), a British artist whose work blends classical technique, pop-cultural wit, and poetic imagination. Playful portraits, surreal landscapes and painterly still lifes bring overdue recognition to a hidden genius of British art, set against the unique, light-filled backdrop of a former Rothschild dairy.

Anthony Lawrence Artists' Britain 1994, oil on canvas 30inx24in. © Paul Close Photography

Tucked away in the wild, windswept expanse of the New Forest, where untamed ponies roam across flat, fern-clad land, sits Palais des Vaches. Once a working dairy, now a contemporary art gallery, it was transformed by Nicholas and Caroline de Rothschild into a space where art and nature converge. The name, which translates charmingly from French as “Palace of cows,” retains a playful nod to its pastoral past. The original white tiles of the dairy remain, creating an unconventional, luminous backdrop for the first major UK retrospective of Anthony Lawrence (1951–2022), the bohemian artist whose work has until now between under appreciated outside his dedicated circle.

Anthony Lawrence Retrospective at Palais des Vaches © Anthony Lawrence Estate

Curated with exceptional sensitivity by Lawrence’s daughter, Sara, the exhibition brings together over 150 works spanning more than five decades, many of which have never been publicly seen. Lawrence, a prolific and idiosyncratic painter, resisted the constraints of patronage and commercial gallery representation during his lifetime, preferring to follow a personal, often unpredictable, artistic path. This retrospective, jointly mounted by the Rothschilds and the Lawrence family, finally allows the public a sustained glimpse into his imaginative universe, offering a fresh perspective on a figure whose work blends the poetic with the witty, the classical with the pop-cultural.

Anthony Lawrence, 'Bacon and Eggs', 1980, oil on canvas, 20inch x 30inch © Paul Close Photography

Lawrence’s oeuvre is remarkable for its diversity. He was a master of still life, portraiture, landscape, and religious iconography, all executed with a dexterity rooted in rigorous classical training at Oxford’s Ruskin School of Art. Yet his work transcends mere technical skill. There is an irrepressible wit at play: Dante’s Inferno is imagined with a series of red lips floating in a void; a portrait of Francis Bacon, with whom Lawrence shared many a convivial evening in Soho bars, is cheekily titled Bacon and Eggs and shows the artist holding a basket full of eggs; and a self-portrait sees the artist donning a trucker’s hat emblazoned with “Art Critic.” His work carries echoes of Pop Art, with references to Peter Blake, while his draughtsmanship recalls the precision of David Hockney (a contemporary who Lawrence once painted a portrait of), all infused with a singular, mischievous intelligence.

Anthony Lawrence, 'A Practical Guide to Aesthetics', 1992. Oil on canvas, 40in x 60in © Paul Close Photography

Among the highlights of the exhibition is A Practical Guide to Aesthetics, a surreal tableau in which a couple walks hand-in-hand through a desert-scape reminiscent of Dalí. Moss-colored curtains frame the scene, giving the impression of a theatrical revelation, and the couple’s figures are lifted straight from a Frank Sinatra film still. Another standout is Still Life with Figures, a diptych portraying a clown at a table with a retro television, a pointillist canvas behind him, and a brown-and-black dog gazing upward.

Anthony Lawrence 'Still Life with Figures - part 2', 1984. Oil on canvas, 40in x 30in © Paul Close Photography

According to Sara Lawrence, her father did not subscribe to grandiose terms to describe his technique, casually referring to these meticulous details as “spotty bits.” Yet these “spotty bits” reveal an artist deeply conversant with the history of art, literature, and music, layering references with a playful originality. A triptych of a nude man, for instance, is inspired by Picasso’s Demoiselles d’Avignon, and the model was Sarah’s former history professor, who agreed to pose after a convivial lunch with the Lawrence family. Similarly, Lawrence’s depictions of trees, flowers, and apples often evoke the tonal sensibilities of Cézanne, revealing his sustained engagement with classical art forms.

Anthony Lawrence Retrospective at Palais des Vaches, October 2025. © Anthony Lawrence Estate

Repeated motifs of dogs, horses, nudes, and flora imbue the work with a sense of continuity, while his portraits capture the essence of his subjects with remarkable economy of line. Among those immortalized on canvas are cultural icons such as Sir Ian McKellen, Yehudi Menuhin, Nigel Mansell, and Seamus Heaney, as well as John Wayne, whom Lawrence sketched after a chance meeting with the actor during a family lunch. His father, Quentin Lawrence, a TV and film director responsible for works including The Saint, The Avengers, and The Trollenberg Terror, exposed Anthony to a world of cinematic and theatrical creativity from an early age. Michael Caine, Stanley Baker, and other luminaries frequented the Lawrence home, contributing to an environment where art, performance, and life intersected seamlessly.

Lawrence was a wry observer of personalities and captured the essence of a character in his portraits. There are also two brilliant self-portraits in the exhibition which fizz with the artist’s effervescent charm – a portrait titled Artists’s Britain shows a dapper young Lawrence wearing ray ban wayfarers, evening jacket and bow tie, against a background of flowers, like a young Jude Law. A later self-portrait at the entrance to the exhibition shows Lawrence donning a Trucker cap with the words ‘art critic’, a wry smile and knowing twinkle in his eye.

Anthony Lawrence 'Yet Another Art Critic' (self portrait), 2006. Oil on canvas, 18in x 18in Anthony Lawrence Estate

Lawrence’s training further underpins his technical brilliance. He studied at St Martin’s School of Art in the late 1960s, a period during which his work absorbed the influences of Pop Art and modernist experimentation. At the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art (1972–75), he honed a classical discipline under Philip Morsberger, the Ruskin Master of Drawing. This grounding in art history, coupled with his avid interest in literature and opera, allowed Lawrence to create paintings that are at once learned and playful, referencing everything from Antiquity and Dante to Man Ray, Picasso, Seurat, and Wagner’s Tannhäuser. A series of paintings depicting disembodied lipstick-red mouths floating in a red ring against a gold background are Lawrence’s abstract response to Dante’s Inferno, and he depicts one of Man Ray’s muses in a beautifully executed pencil drawing.

Anthony Lawrence retrospective at Palais des Vaches, October 2025 © Lee Sharrock

Walking through the exhibition, one is struck by Lawrence’s ability to balance technique and invention, precision and humor. Portraits are light-handed yet incisive, capturing character with minimal strokes. Landscapes and still lifes are suffused with atmosphere, often invoking a sense of theatricality or narrative tension. Works such as the clown diptych and A Practical Guide to Aesthetics exemplify his capacity to imbue ordinary scenes with surreal, almost cinematic qualities.

Yet perhaps the most compelling aspect of Lawrence’s work is its accessibility. Despite a profound engagement with art history and a highly trained hand, his paintings and drawings never alienate. There is a warmth and immediacy to his vision: the human figures are empathetic, the animals attentive, and the landscapes inviting. This retrospective not only repositions Lawrence within the post-modern canon but also underscores the charm, intelligence, and generosity of his creative spirit.

Anthony Lawrence Retrospective, Palais des Vaches, October 2025 © Lee Sharrock

Palais des Vaches itself adds an additional layer of meaning to the exhibition. The gallery’s white tiled interiors provide a counterpoint to the richly detailed, often playful complexity of Lawrence’s work. The rural setting, with its open skies and roaming horses, mirrors the freedom and expansiveness that characterize Lawrence’s artistic imagination. It is a fitting venue for an artist whose life and work resisted convention while remaining deeply rooted in observation, craft, and cultural literacy.

The Anthony Lawrence retrospective is long overdue, a rare opportunity to encounter a major British artist whose reputation has long rested on anecdote rather than comprehensive study. The exhibition is a testament to the enduring appeal of an artist who worked quietly, often privately, yet whose work resonates with both intellectual depth and visual delight. Through careful curation, generous family support, and the distinctive atmosphere of Palais des Vaches, Lawrence’s art is given the prominence it has always deserved.

This exhibition is not simply a survey of Lawrence’s oeuvre; it is an invitation into the mind of a singular artist. It reveals the convergence of classical technique, pop-culture sensibilities, and a mischievous, poetic imagination. For those willing to take the winding country roads to the New Forest, the retrospective offers a chance to see the world through the eyes of an artist who never compromised, never followed the trends, and whose work continues to surprise, delight, and provoke.

Anthony Lawrence in his home studio, 1991 © Anthony Lawrence Estate

Anthony Lawrence: Retrospective is at Palais des Vaches, Exbury, New Forest until Friday, 31st October.

Editorial StandardsReprints & Permissions