‘Sculpting Life’: The Ronald Moody exhibition returns to West London, with more than 50 works by the Jamaican sculptor

The exhibition “Ronald Moody: Sculpting Life” opened its doors at Orleans House Gallery in Twickenham, in West London, on 2 October 2026, as the London Borough of Richmond announces, and will remain open until 28 February 2027, with free admission. The exhibition brings to the city where he lived, worked and carved for more than half a century the work of the Jamaican sculptor Ronald Moody (1900–1984), considered one of the most important, but historically most overlooked, artists of the 20th century.

The exhibition, which comes on tour from The Hepworth Wakefield — where the project won two Association for Art History awards in 2024, for both curation and publication, the first time a single project has received both — brings together more than 50 works spanning Moody’s entire creative practice: from the wooden figures created in the 1930s, to the post-war experiments with concrete and resin, including poetry, writings and audio broadcasts by the artist. The “Legacy Projects” programme presents new contemporary commissions by Kedisha Coakley, Dexter McLean and Kat Francois, which respond to Moody’s ideas and artistic legacy. The exhibition is organised by The Hepworth Wakefield in collaboration with Orleans House Gallery, with artistic and curatorial collaboration from Kedisha Coakley, and is supported by Arts Council England and the Weston Loan Fund.

Moody initially trained as a dentist, but after seeing Egyptian sculpture at the British Museum he decided to teach himself carving. He developed a distinctive sculptural language that combines modernism, spirituality and a deep engagement with global mythology — a continuous journey of renewal that took him from his early years in London and Paris to the war experience that shaped some of his most powerful works. He was also a founding member of the Caribbean Artists Movement, and for this edition the gallery is collaborating with the Centre for Caribbean and Diaspora Studies at Goldsmiths, University of London, on writing and community engagement.

The opening coincides with Black History Month in Britain, and the Borough of Richmond has included the exhibition in its October celebrations programme. The opening ceremony was held on Thursday, 1 October, while for the public the exhibition is open from Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00–17:00, closed on Mondays. Admission is free.