Leonora Carrington’s large bronze sculpture at the centre of North Hall welcomes you to explore the exhibition Forbidden Territories: 100 Years of Surreal Landscapes, which is on view in the galleries upstairs.

Carrington’s long career spans the first generation of Surrealist artists through to today, and represents the global reach of Surrealism.

Born in Britain, she met Max Ernst in the 1930s who introduced her to the circle of Surrealist artists in London and Paris. She later moved to Mexico, working among the Mexican Surrealists and drew inspiration from Mayan tradition and mythology, creating paintings you can see upstairs in the exhibition. Later in life, when painting became difficult due to arthritis, she turned to sculpting the figures she first painted in the 1950s. Based on a painting she made in 1953, the sculpture of El Bailarin (‘the dancer’) was made the year she passed away.

Object description
Type: Sculpture
Location: The Box, Plymouth, Devon
Material: Bronze
Artist: Leonora Carrington (1917-2011)
Date: 2011

Image Details
Date: 18 September 2025
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/50s
ISO: 400
Licence: Image of a ‘The Box’ asset. This image cannot be licensed.