Peter Lanyon (1918–1964) was a pioneering British artist known for his innovative contributions to abstract art and his deep connection to the landscape of his native Cornwall. Born in St Ives, Cornwall, Lanyon's artistic journey was profoundly influenced by the rugged terrain and dramatic coastline of the region, which he explored with a keen eye and a profound sense of curiosity.

Lanyon's early artistic education began at the Penzance School of Art, where he studied under the guidance of local artists such as Robert Borlase Smart and Bernard Leach. He later attended the Euston Road School in London, where he was introduced to the principles of modernism and abstraction. These formative experiences laid the groundwork for Lanyon's distinctive artistic style, which would evolve over the course of his career.

In the 1940s, Lanyon returned to Cornwall, where he immersed himself in the landscape, painting en plein air and capturing the essence of the region's natural beauty. His paintings from this period, characterised by their bold colours and dynamic compositions, reflect Lanyon's deep emotional and spiritual connection to the land.

As Lanyon's artistic practice matured, he began to experiment with abstraction, pushing the boundaries of traditional landscape painting and exploring new ways of representing space and form. His later works, influenced by the principles of gestural abstraction and automatism, reveal a profound engagement with the act of painting itself, as well as with the transformative power of the creative process.

In addition to his painting practice, Lanyon was also an accomplished glider pilot, a pursuit that further deepened his understanding of the landscape and its elemental forces. His experiences soaring above the Cornish countryside inspired many of his most iconic works, which seek to capture the sensation of flight and the ever-shifting patterns of light and shadow.

Lanyon's artistic vision was cut tragically short by his untimely death in 1964, following a gliding accident. Despite his relatively brief career, his impact on the trajectory of British art was profound, and his legacy continues to resonate with artists and art enthusiasts around the world. Today, Lanyon is celebrated as one of the leading figures of the St Ives School of artists, and his works are held in prestigious collections worldwide, including the Tate Gallery in London.