Exhibitions at Allan Bank

The Caravan Press

Until 20 December 2026, Gallery 2

This exhibition reveals the fascinating life and print archive of Gwyneth Alban Davis, who ran a one-woman printing business whilst living in a caravan on the Langdale Estate in the 1940s. See evocative personal photos on large lightboxes, framed prints created on her original blocks hung on the wall and her jardine printing press. Her story is one of perseverance, creativity and hope in the harsh post war period.

Gwyneth's two-week holiday in Ambleside in 1946 turned into a four and a half year stay, where she found a vibrant community of artists, including Kurt Schwitters and Hilde Goldschmidt. The Langdale Estate, a former gunpowder works converted into a wooded holiday camp, had become a bohemian retreat during the war. Between 1947 and 1950, Gwyneth printed stationary, business and Christmas cards for hotels, shops and houses in the Lake District; she illustrated a local travel book and printed ‘The Story of the Merz Barn,’ a booklet promoting Schwitters’ final artwork, a few months after his death.

The exhibition is co-curated by Tracy Hill and Heather Mullender-Ross and is part of a two year programme partnership with Artlab Contemporary Print Studios (ACPS) at University of Lancashire (ULan). 

Women In Print

9 March - 7 July 2026, Gallery 3.

A new collection of original artworks by 12 artists exploring the power and possibility of contemporary printmaking. Works by leading artists including 2017 Turner Prize winning artist Lubaina Himid, Helen Cammock, Emily Speed and Heather Peak.

Four artists a year are invited to work with research staff at Artlab Contemporary Print Studios (ACPS) at The University of Lancashire (ULan) as part of a unique residency programme.  Inspired by Gwyneth Alban Davis’ sense of community, resilience and creativity, the residency offers women artists at all stages of their career the time, skills, and resources to test new ideas. 

Each participating artist was invited to produce a limited edition print. One of the aims of the Women in Print project is to start conversations around the absence of women’s prints in national collections, and the value and preservation of heritage crafts and creative disciplines in educational institutions.

Prints on display by: 

• Artist A & Artist B 
• Helen Cammock 
• Rebecca Chesney 
• Anna Júlía Friðbjörnsdottir  
• Emma Gregory  
• Lubaina Himid 
• Sana Obaid 
• Alicia Paz  
• Heather Peak 
• Emily Speed 
• Jenny Steele 

Women in Print is co-curated by the University of Lancashire's ArtLab Contemporary Print Studio and Centre of Print Research at the University of the West of England Bristol.

For families

• Look through the stereographs at vintage photos of the Lake District as part of the Wordsworth the Influencer display in gallery 1.
• Try your hand a making your own print using replicas of Gwyneth Alban Davis printing blocks. Can you find the matching print on display on the wall?
• Head to the The Art Caravan where you’ll find playful objects to make bird sounds with, printing blocks, pencils and paper.
• For more ideas, have a look at our things to do at Allan Bank article.