Beryl's Travels
26 April 2026
Beryl Cook painted Plymouth as it had never been seen before and the city influenced the way she saw and represented the wider world too. With the success of her first exhibitions and growing reputation she travelled to other places - for work as well as leisure. Here are some of the paintings in our ‘Beryl Cook: Pride and Joy’ exhibition that were inspired by her visits to other cities.
London
Ladies Night (Ivor Dickie)
Oil on board, 1981
This painting always makes people chuckle and was made by Cook after she watched a performance by Ivor Dickie at a working men's club in Camden, London in 1980. She wasn't just there for fun though! She'd been asked to paint Dickie for an article about male strippers in Woman’s Journal after he refused to be photographed. Cook was apparently reluctant at first, but eventually took up the offer and the rest, as they say, is history!
Glasgow
By the Clyde
Oil on board, 1992
Cook rarely undertook commissions, but in 1992 she accepted an invitation to a residency by Glasgow Museums Director Julian Spalding. As a result, she visited the city and toured its nighlife. This work is based on a photograph she took while she was there, and shows a woman she spotted outside the railway station. The location may not be Plymouth but there are many familiar elements: the reality of the surroundings such as the scrubbed out racist graffiti on the boulder under the bridge, the friendly pet and, of course, the infamous animal print.
Amsterdam
Red Light District
Oil on board, around 1975
This early painting shows Cook beginning to develop her signature style featuring the rounded faces, legs and arms she became known for. Throughout her career she painted sex workers as some of the many people who were part of a city’s nightlife. She rarely expressed political views but noted in letters and interviews that she thought sex work should be decriminalised in England. These two women in a window caught her eye during a holiday in Amsterdam.
Barcelona
La Paloma Dancehall
Oil on board, 1990
‘La Paloma’ has been described as 'one of the great dancehalls in the history of Barcelona'. Despite the fact that it looks like an industrial building from the outside, its interior has a luxurious baroque decoration with impressive lighting and frescoes. Although it provides the setting and title for this painting you can't actually see any of it! As with many of her works, Cook's focus is firmly on the people - their movements, facial expressions and outfits.
What these, and the other paintings Cook made show, is that wherever she was in the world she constantly observed her surroundings and painted people free from a judgemental gaze. She reflected her subjects' lived experiences and approached them with care, curiosity and humanity.
You can see these four paintings in our Beryl Cook: Pride and Joy exhibition until the end of Sunday 31 May. Exhibition opening hours are 10am-5pm Tuesday-Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays. You can book your free tickets here.
Images
Ladies Night (Ivor Dickie), 1981
By The Clyde, 1992
Red Light District, around 1975
La Paloma Dancehall, 1900
All by Beryl Cook and courtesy of www.ourberylcook.com © John Cook 2025. Images by Dom Moore.
Many thanks to Terah Walkup, art curator.