Talk
The Shelter Drawings in Context
17:00–18:30
Studios & Gardens, Hertfordshire
£12
About this event
Join Rebecca Newell and Sebastiano Barassi for an evening of talks and conversation on the subject of Henry Moore’s ‘Shelter Drawings’, and the wider context of artists making work in response to wartime conditions.
Sebastiano and Rebecca will discuss two newly opened exhibitions: The Shelter Drawings 1940-1941 at the Henry Moore Studios & Gardens, and Beauty and Destruction: Wartime London in Art at IWM London.
The speakers will offer insights into Moore’s wartime practice, the role of the War Artists’ Advisory Committee, and the social history of London’s underground shelters.
About the speakers
Rebecca Newell
Rebecca Newell has been IWM’s Head of Art since 2017, working on all aspects related to the care, display and interpretation of the pre-eminent art collection. She is responsible for IWM’s art commissioning programme, and was lead curator for the Blavatnik Art, Film and Photography Galleries. Opened in 2023, the galleries represent the first time in IWM’s history that a permanent, dedicated space has been created to explore visual art, photography and film in sustained dialogue.
Sebastiano Barassi
Sebastiano Barassi is the Head of Henry Moore Collections & Programmes at the Henry Moore Foundation in Hertfordshire, where he regularly curates exhibitions and contributes to publications about Henry Moore and 20th-century sculpture.
Tickets
This talk will take place in the Sheep Field Barn Learning Studios at Henry Moore Studios & Gardens. Places are limited so please book in advance to avoid disappointment.
Tickets to this talk are £12, and include admission to the Sheep Field Barn Gallery from 16:00 to 17:00.
More talks & gallery tours
Guided tour
Henry Moore’s debut solo exhibition in the USA, 1946
15:00–16:00
Guided tour
Curator's Tour of The Art and Life of Henry Moore
14:30–15:30
What’s on
Find out more about what you can see and do this season at Henry Moore Studios & Gardens, Hertfordshire.
The Art and Life of Henry Moore
This exhibition in the newly-opened Sheep Field Barn Gallery presents over eighty sculptures made between 1922 and 1986, alongside photographs and archival materials from the Henry Moore Foundation Collections.
Henry Moore: Shelter Drawings
Our special display for 2026 focuses on Moore’s Shelter Drawings. Created during the Second World War, they are among the most powerful and widely recognised works of Moore’s career.
Upcoming events
See all events
Early years activity
Mini Moore: Make
11:00–13:00
Drop-in workshop
Bones & Stones
12:00–16:00, last entry 15:30
Live material demonstration
Sculpture Series: Carving Wood
13:30–16:00
Drop-in workshop
Creating from Classics: Sculpture & Painting
12:00–16:00, last entry 15:30
Getting here
We’re located just 27 miles north of London in the beautiful Hertfordshire countryside.
Our 2026 visitor season runs from 1 April to 25 October. We’re open Wednesday to Sunday, 11:00–17:00.
Henry Moore Studios & Gardens
Perry Green
Hertfordshire
SG10 6EE
United Kingdom
T: 01279 843 333
E: visitorservices@henry-moore.org
