Waterloo Bridge, 1906-7

The 12 finest works of radical French artist André Derain are to be displayed as a group for the first time at Somerset House in London.

Hot on the heels of Henri Matisse and Claude Monet, Derain broke traditional conventions of painting in the early 1900s and was part of a group branded Fauves, or wild beasts.

Derain took his uninhibited use of pure colour, spirited brushwork and overwhelming sense of energy to London in 1906, where he produced large-scale paintings of the city.

"Immense" was how Derain described the Thames. He produced a total of 30 canvases during his time in London, focusing in particular on the working life of the river, activity in the city's parks and streets, and historical sights and buildings. His work provides an intriguing glimpse of the period.

Barges on the Thames (Southwark Bridge), 1906-7

Derain produced no less than six views of Tower Bridge, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city at the time. Waterloo Bridge displays dashes of showering sunlight and shimmering water, and Barges on the Thames depicts the busy river traffic of the era alongside its wharves and banks.

The Parisian art dealer Ambroise Vollard bought Derain's entire London series but did not exhibit them as a group. Although they have been included in general exhibitions on Fauvism, they have never before been the main focus of a museum exhibition. The 12 canvases are on loan from major museums such as the Musée d'Orsay in Paris and New York's MoMA.

Regent Street, 1906-7.

A visit to this exhibition will take you back in time to a London well before glaring billboards, giant Ferris wheels, fast food chains and congested cars. Let Derain be your guide.

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