Pipe up: Museum seeks help to bring largest collection of John Piper's art to Henley-on-Thames' River and Rowing Museum

John Piper was one of Britain's most accomplished modern landscape artists – an extraordinary artistic talent, oft overlooked, with a unique eye for the scenery of his adopted Chiltern Hills.

For the latter part of his life, the prodigious artist lived at Fawley Bottom, near Henley – so it seems only appropriate that the town should become a home for the largest collection of his work.

The River & Rowing Museum has launched an ambitious crowdfunding campaign through Art Happens, a digital platform hosted by the charity Art Fund, to create a gallery dedicated to Piper's work.

If successful, the John Piper gallery will be the largest permanent exhibition of his work in the world, bringing together some of his greatest creations, including rare pieces from private collections – some of which have not been on public view.

The museum will also receive pieces personally donated from Piper's family, who, the museum says, are keen to mark his prolific and extraordinary talent with a dedicated permanent gallery in his home town.

An official war artist in the Second World War, Piper is known for his striking landscape and architectural work. He also designed the baptistry for Basil Spence 's new Coventry Cathedral – having visited the blitzed city the day after the 14 November 1940 air raid which reduced Coventry's historic core to ruins.

He worked on the distinctive artwork for the Shell Guides alongside John Betjeman, and collaborated with the potter Geoffrey Eastop, composer Benjamin Britten and the artist Ben Nicholson.

Much of his best-known work depicts the countryside around his farmhouse in Fawley, where he built a pottery and a studio large enough to create full-sized designs for stained glass windows.

"He is ranked alongside Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson as one of the greats of British modern and abstract art.

The crowdfunding bid aims to raise £22,000 by June 17, and is the first undertaken by the museum – which already has a number of Piper's paintings along with those of other notable local artists working in the Thames valley.

“To work on a project that brings together works of art from one of the most important artists our country has ever produced is a massive thrill," adds Ludo.

"When that artist is local it becomes hugely more personal and significant, especially when that project is entirely in the hands of the community.”

The gallery already has the seal of approval from John Piper’s children, Sebastian Piper and Clarissa Lewis (nee Piper), who said: “Our father would be delighted to have a gallery dedicated to his work in Henley, his local town for nearly 60 years. All the family is fully behind the bid and can think of no better or more fitting tribute.”

His grandchildren, Luke and Henry Piper have already donated a piece from their personal collection to the museum. Luke followed in his grandfather’s footsteps in becoming a successful artist, now living in Somerset.

“We pride ourselves on being a local museum which is very family and community -focused," says Ludo. "Although small, we punch well above our weight in the calibre of the exhibitions we offer to our audiences. 2016 is our Year of Art and we’ve already hosted a successful David Hockney exhibition.

"Achieving our dream of launching the permanent John Piper gallery would be a fantastic way to reinforce our commitment to the visual arts and create a lasting legacy for Henley. Most importantly we would be truly honoured to bring together and display Piper’s great works of art for everyone to enjoy.”

Rewards...

In return for donations, which the museum hopes will come from both the local and wider arts community, it has created a range of exclusive gifts influenced by Piper’s work.

They include textile designers David Whitehead and Sons who have reproduced a series of textile prints created by Piper in the 1960s. They will be used to create a range of rewards, including silk scarves and cushions, to reward crowdfunding donations.

Rewards range from £5 for an online acknowledgement for a donation, through to £15 for specially commissioned post-cards, £25 for a tote bag, £60 for a cushion, £200 for a Luke Piper print of the museum, £400 for a limited edition John Piper print, and £995 for a private tour of Luke Piper’s studio.

Eloise Chapman, head of collections and exhibitions at the museum said: “Whether you’re donating because you believe in creating a permanent local space to celebrate Piper’s genius or you contribute because you’d like a limited edition Piper print or a few cushions to brighten up a room, we are incredibly grateful. We passionately believe that the River & Rowing Museum is the perfect place to give John Piper’s work the home and recognition it deserves. We very much hope Henley will help us bring that dream to life.”

She added: Finally it feels as if John Piper is getting the recognition he so richly deserves. With our local community’s support we can celebrate Piper’s work in the landscape that inspired him to create some of the most important art our country has ever produced.”

The crowdfunding bid to create the largest permanent exhibition of John Piper’s work coincides with the publication of a new book on the artist by David Fraser Jenkins, leading art historian and former senior curator at Tate Britain, who is a supporter of the gallery. He said: “Henley is a beautiful small town in the country, and this English countryside forever outside his windows and through his open door into trees and lanes was a very particular background to his art.

"To see a public gallery showing his paintings in Henley would be like a visit to his own studio, and would share the light and colours that were around him as he painted. There are, throughout Europe, many artists' museums in the places where they lived, and a collection of Pipers at Henley would become like them, a place to make the time to go to, to enjoy and understand his art in the best way possible."

* To donate to the River & Rowing Museum’s crowdfunding bid please visit: artfund.org/get-involved/art-happens