Picasso, Dali and Warhol works to go display at Lanarkshire heritage site

The exhibition by London's Fashion and Textile Museum will be visiting New Lanark from January to April next year.

A new art gallery due to open next year in the 18th century building at New Lanark will play host to a major exhibition charting the history of textiles in the 21st century.

Other artists to be featured in the show, which has been compiled by the Fashion and Textile Museum in London, include Raoul Dufy, Sonia Delaunay, Henry Moore, Fernand Léger, Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson and Alexander Calder.

The touring exhibition, which is being shown in Scotland for the first time, will feature more than 200 rare pieces, including some drawn from the personal collection of fashion designer Zandra Rhodes.

The show, Artist Textiles - Picasso to Warhol, will be mounted in New Lanark following previous visits to London, the Netherlands, Canada and the United States.

The gallery is being created at the heart of the heritage attraction at New Lanark, which celebrates its 1786 origins as a cotton spinning mill, its role as a powerhouse for Scotland during the industrial revolution and its pioneering working conditions.

New Lanark quickly became known for the enlightened management of social pioneer Robert Owen, who provided decent homes, fair wages, free health care, a new education system for villagers and the world’s first workplace nursery school.

Scott McCauley, chief executive of the New Lanark Trust, which runs the attraction, said: “Were very proud that Artist Textiles – Picasso to Warhol will make its Scottish debut at New Lanark in 2018, officially launching our brand new exhibition Gallery.

“This bespoke space will be housed within one of New Lanark’s 18th century cotton mill buildings, which is also home to our woollen yarn production.

“We hope that hosting the exhibition will begin a flourishing relationship with the Fashion and Textile Museum, giving visitors to New Lanark and the local community a chance to see some truly fantastic designs on their doorstep.”

Exhibition curator Evelyn Whitelaw said: “This exhibition highlights the importance of the textile industry in the dissemination and promotion of contemporary art. Manufacturers and mills had the foresight to work with painters and sculptors to develop beautiful fabrics that democratised modern art for the masses.”