# John Tunnard artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/john-tunnard/
Profile generated: 2026-05-23T01:58:00.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1900-05-17
- Death date: 1971-12-18
- Nationality: English, British
- Movements: Modernism, Abstract painting
- Common media: Oil on canvas and board, Gouache, Watercolour, Textile design

## About John Tunnard

John Samuel Tunnard (1900–1971) was an English modernist painter and designer whose work bridges abstract and surrealist tendencies in mid-twentieth-century British art. Born in Sandy, Bedfordshire, he trained and practised as a textile designer before turning fully to painting around 1929. His mature work combines abstracted landscapes, geometric forms, and imaginative imagery, often inspired by natural science, music, and the Cornish coastline where he lived. Tunnard exhibited widely in Britain and his paintings entered major public collections including Tate and the Museum of Modern Art, New York. He was also known as a conscientious objector and anti-hunting campaigner. He taught the painter Wilhelmina Barns-Graham and was a cousin of the landscape architect Christopher Tunnard. Collectors encounter his work at auction primarily within Modern British and Post-War painting categories.

## Common works and media

Common works by Tunnard include oil paintings on canvas and board, gouaches, watercolours, and ink drawings. His subjects range from abstracted landscapes and coastal scenes to imaginative compositions featuring geometric forms, celestial motifs, and natural-history imagery. He also produced textile designs during his early career. Works on paper are encountered more frequently at auction than large-scale oils.

## Market and appraisal context

Tunnard's paintings appear at auction chiefly under Modern British and Post-War British art. Oil paintings on canvas from the 1940s and 1950s—when his signature abstract-landscape language was most resolved—tend to attract the strongest interest. Works on paper, including gouaches and watercolours, are more frequently encountered and generally trade at lower levels. Provenance linking to notable galleries or museum exhibitions can add meaningful premium. Condition is a significant factor, as his surfaces may be delicate. Early textile designs form a separate collecting area and require specialist attribution. Appraisers should consult current comparable-sale records for up-to-date market benchmarks.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine verified artist identity research from museum and library authority records—including Tate, MoMA, Getty ULAN, RKD, and VIAF—with auction-house context, sale dates, realised prices, and comparable lot data when those records are available.

## Sources

- RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/209150
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q11723006
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/john-tunnard-2074
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/40190676/
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500032606
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Tunnard
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/5969
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n77005832