# Peter Lanyon artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/peter-lanyon/
Profile generated: 2026-05-18T20:16:00.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1918-02-08
- Death date: 1964-08-31
- Nationality: British
- Movements: Post-War British Art, St Ives School, Abstract Expressionism, Constructivism
- Common media: oil painting, construction (three-dimensional wall-based works), ceramics, collage

## About Peter Lanyon

Peter Lanyon (1918–1964) was a British painter, sculptor, and ceramicist whose work redefined the relationship between landscape and abstraction in post-war British art. Born in St Ives, Cornwall, he drew lifelong inspiration from the coastal environment of his home, translating the experience of place into compositions that move between figuration and pure abstraction. His practice absorbed Constructivist principles early on before developing a distinctive expressive language that engaged with Abstract Expressionism while remaining rooted in the specifics of the Cornish landscape. Beyond painting, Lanyon produced three-dimensional constructions, collages, and ceramics, and taught at the Bath Academy of Art and the Falmouth School of Arts. A central figure in the St Ives artistic community, he exhibited widely during his lifetime. His career ended with his death in 1964 at age forty-six, but the body of work he produced is widely regarded as one of the most original contributions to modern British painting.

## Common works and media

Peter Lanyon worked across oil painting (on canvas and board), three-dimensional constructions assembled from wood, metal, and found materials, collage, and ceramics. His paintings range from small studies to large-scale canvases, often rooted in the Cornish landscape but interpreted through layered, gestural abstraction. Common subjects include coastal and inland landscapes of Cornwall and aerial perspectives influenced by his interest in gliding. Ceramic pieces, produced in collaboration with the St Ives pottery community, also appear. Works on paper—including gouaches, drawings, and prints—surface regularly in auction contexts and represent an accessible segment of his market.

## Market and appraisal context

Peter Lanyon's work appears regularly in Post-War and Contemporary British Art sales. Large-scale oil paintings from the late 1950s and early 1960s tend to achieve the strongest results. Works on paper, constructions, and ceramics also surface at auction across a broad estimate range. Provenance, exhibition history, and condition are significant valuation factors. Pieces with documented St Ives provenance or museum exhibition records generally attract stronger buyer interest. Lanyon's relatively short career and the concentration of major works in public collections mean that quality examples with clear provenance are comparatively scarce. Attribution, medium, date, and exhibition history should be verified by a specialist, and professional appraisal is recommended for any work believed to be by Lanyon.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine researched artist identity information with auction records, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. This page draws on museum, library authority, and scholarly sources to establish biographical and art-historical context. Market observations are based on publicly documented auction results and biographical sources; they should not be treated as formal appraisals.

## Sources

- RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/48065
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/peter-lanyon-1467
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Lanyon
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q869919
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500014100
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/4830148997689159870002/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n50037710