Sheila Robinson (1925-88), an accomplished printmaker, was one of Edward Bawden's students at the Royal College of Art in the late 1940s, and later a close friend and neighbour in Great Bardfield then Saffron Walden. This is The Third (1963), which is in the Fry Art Gallery in Saffron Walden where a wide range of work by the Great Bardfield artists can be seen. A recently published book about Sheila Robinson, has a contribution by her daughter, Chloë Cheese, who spent her childhood in the village.

The Great Bardfield artists produced a wide range of images of Essex, and the paintings by the often unjustly neglected but multi-talented Kenneth Rowntree (1915-97) illustrate the beauty and variety of this also frequently underrated county. This is Summer Gardens, Great Bardfield (1940s, Chelmsford Museum Store); in 1943 Rowntree and his wife moved out of London to a house in the village. Liss Llewellyn has a number of works by Rowntree for sale.

The male artists who lived in and around Great Bardfield have typically attracted more attention than their talented wives and partners, but increased interest in all aspects of the group's output has now also highlighted the fascinating domestic crafts and creativity that were also a part of Great Bardfield life. Lucie Aldridge (1889-1974), wife of the artist John Aldridge (1905-83), was a talented rag rug designer and maker, and occasionally exhibited her creations. But because rag rugs have not been regarded as collectable, few have survived. 

Edward Bawden was for many years the lynchpin of the Great Bardfield artistic world and is one of the key characters in Tirzah Garwood's book. His genius and influence are celebrated in a marvellous exhibition Edward Bawden & Me at The Higgins in Bedford. On show is this lovely 'Long Live Great Bardfield' jug made by Sussex Lustreware.

By comparison with the Bloomsbury group, the artists who lived in and around the small Essex village of Great Bardfield from the 1930s to 1970s have received relatively little attention until recently, in part because although they originally coalesced around Edward Bawden and Eric Ravilious, they never had a defining group identity. The best introduction is Long Live Great Bardfield by Tirzah Garwood who painted House at Great Bardfield (1945, private collection) which is currently in an online exhibition at Liss Llewellyn.

The 1924 Paris Olympics were not only important in terms of women's sport, they also influenced the fashions of the time. The Fitzwilliam exhibition focuses on the loose, drop-waisted, calf-length tennis dresses which gave wearers freedom of movement and comfort, and then became a popular style for non-athletes. These are the dresses we can imagine so many modern, energetic, female characters in our books wearing, having thrown off their stays and lacings, together with many societal restrictions. Jane in High Wages successfully coaxes many corseted customers into loose, fluid clothes.  

1924 was also the year of the fourth Women's Olympiad, the first to be held in London. Eight nations participated in twelve track and field events, and seven world records were set. Mary Lines (1893-1978) was one of the outstanding British athletes, winning gold in the long jump and 100 yards race. She is commemorated on a plinth in the foyer of the University of Westminster's Regent Street building. Mary Lines attended gym evening classes there (when it was Regent Street Polytechnic) while working as a waitress in London.