Steamy scenes in urban underworlds were Edward Burra’s great subject—now they're coming to Tate Britain

Tate Britain is staging a major retrospective of Edward Burra (1905-76), the English painter known for his vivid depictions of urban underworlds, jazz clubs, and later brooding landscapes. The exhibition, curated by Thomas Kennedy, features over 80 paintings and newly discovered archival material spanning Burra's career from the 1920s to the 1970s, including rarities like 'Cornish Clay Mines' (1970) from a private collection. It also draws on Burra's extensive correspondence—described by his biographer Jane Stevenson as 'grubby letters'—which offers unprecedented insight into his personal world and chronic pain from rheumatoid arthritis and anemia.