Ahead of re-opening Blenheim Palace to visitors on 2nd December, Blenheim Art Foundation confirms its major exhibition by British painter Cecily Brown, which opened on 17th September 2020, has been extended to 7th February 2021.

Due to close on 3rd January, organisers have decided to keep it open to allow more people to view the widely acclaimed show, the artist's first major solo exhibition in the UK in more than 15 years.

Considered one of the foremost artists of her generation, the British-born painter is known for her large-scale, sensual, semi-abstract artworks.

Inspired by the history of painting, Brown often reworks motifs and images from variety of painters such as Francisco de Goya, Willem de Kooning, Francis Bacon and Joan Mitchell, as well as Old Masters like Peter Paul Rubens and Nicholas Poussin. In 2018, her painting Suddenly Last Summer (1999) sold for $6.8m at Sotheby's in New York.

'Cecily Brown at Blenheim Palace' features all new work created by the artist directly in response to the Oxfordshire UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Exhibited amongst the Palace's extensive collection of artefacts, the exhibition provides a fascinating counterpoint to the centuries of rich British artistic tradition and imagery on display across the magnificent eighteenth-century landmark.

Brown's new series visually references masterpieces by Sir Joshua Reynolds and Sir Anthony Van Dyck on display within the Palace, as well as family heraldry, armorial banners and the martial scenes of the Blenheim Tapestries that line the State Rooms.

For more information please contact Samantha Vaughan on 07469 129743 or at SVaughan@blenheimpalace.com or Drew Cunliffe at drew@flamingo-marketing.co.uk .

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Cecily Brown

Cecily Brown was born in London and studied at the Slade School of Art before moving to New York in 1994. She has been credited as a central figure in the resurgence of painting at the turn of the millennium. Her work is included in the public collections of The  British Museum, London; Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; Hammer Museum, Los Angeles;  National Gallery of Art, Washington DC; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; MFA,  Boston; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; Tate Gallery, London; and Whitney  Museum of American Art, New York.

About Blenheim Art Foundation

Blenheim Art Foundation launched in 2014 as a programme of contemporary art at Blenheim Palace. Offering visitors, a unique opportunity to experience contemporary art in the historic setting of the Palace and its celebrated grounds, the not-for-profit foundation aims to bring together one of Britain's most famous landmarks with the work of the most innovative contemporary artists working today.

Previous exhibitions include Ai Weiwei at Blenheim Palace (2014), Lawrence Weiner: Within a Realm of Distance (2015), Michelangelo Pistoletto at Blenheim Palace (2016), SOFTER: Jenny Holzer at Blenheim Palace (2017) (winner of Global Fine Art Award for 'Best Public Exhibition'),Yves Klein at Blenheim Palace (2018) and Victory is Not an Option: Maurizio Cattelan at Blenheim Palace (2019). www.blenheimartfoundation.org.uk

Twitter: @BlenheimArt | Instagram: @blenheimartfoundation

Facebook: /BlenheimArtFoundation |Exhibition films: www.blenheimartfoundation.org.uk/films/

About Blenheim Palace

Blenheim Palace is the home of the 12th Duke and Duchess of Marlborough and the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. This masterpiece of 18th century Baroque architecture boasts over 300 years of history and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site surrounded by more  than 2,000 acres of Capability Brown landscaped parkland and formal gardens. Not only an iconic part of history, Blenheim Palace is also a living and changing experience with a wealth of events, themed tours and exhibitions throughout the year. www.blenheimpalace.com