From 10 September–25 October 2026, Studio Voltaire and Bicester Village will collaborate on a major project celebrating the enduring legacy of iconic British painter Beryl Cook (b. 1926–d. 2008). Launching on what would have been Cook’s 100th birthday, Bicester Village will host a mile-long open-air installation featuring life-size cutout characters and large-scale murals from the artist's best-loved paintings.
Visitors will find themselves shopping, eating and walking right alongside Cook’s larger-than-life characters who will populate the streets, benches, signposts, green spaces and phone boxes of the village. From characters shopping at the market, bowling on the green and gardening, to flamboyant ladies dancing on balconies, Cook’s depictions of everyday Britain celebrate joy in the everyday.
Cook’s characters will lead visitors to a House of Voltaire pop-up in the centre of the village, hosting an exclusive capsule collection celebrating all things Beryl Cook, ranging from limited-edition prints to specially designed cushions, tea towels, silk scarves, pin badges, tea cups, tea trays, tablecloths, and lambswool dog blankets. House of Voltaire will offer very rare, original Beryl Cook unique works for sale.
‘Beryl Cook & Friends’ also pairs Cook’s work with a stellar lineup of editions and merchandise by renowned artists and designers who continue her important legacy. Contributors include Ashish, Jeremy Deller, Patrizio di Massimo, Anthea Hamilton, Chantal Joffe, Rachel Jones, Ella Kruglyanskaya, Linder, Sarah Lucas, and France-Lise McGurn. Limited editions by iconic British artists Stanley Spencer, Edward Burra and Louis Wain will be available, contextualising Cook’s work alongside three historic artists whom Cook was greatly influenced by.
With prices ranging from £7 to £70,000, the collection allows established collectors and burgeoning enthusiasts alike to take home a piece of British cultural history.
Bringing Cook’s joyous energy from Bicester Village to London, House of Voltaire will return to Mayfair at Frieze No. 9, Cork Street, London, from 26 November to 19 December 2026, offering a cornucopia of unique works, limited editions and specially commissioned homewares, clothing and accessories from over 100 artists and designers, just in time for Christmas shopping.
All works will be available at Bicester Village and globally at houseofvoltaire.org. Sales support arts and education charity Studio Voltaire’s free artistic and community programmes.
Organised in close collaboration with Beryl Cook’s family, the project follows Studio Voltaire’s blockbuster 2024 exhibition, 'Beryl Cook / Tom of Finland', the most-visited in the organisation’s 32-year history, which helped to reappraise Beryl’s oeuvre and bring it to a new generation of admirers. A subsequent retrospective of Cook’s work was held this January–May at The Box in her hometown of Plymouth, reaching record-breaking audiences.
This project also marks the launch of a major three-year partnership between Studio Voltaire and Bicester Village, which will see Bicester Village provide transformational funding to Studio Voltaire’s renowned Learning Programme. This landmark partnership will allow Studio Voltaire to significantly expand its creative programming with local schools, colleges and community groups.
Designed to overcome the barriers often encountered in formal education, the programme champions those with limited access to creative opportunities by providing free, artist-led workshops, drop-in activities, and skills-development sessions that are deeply rooted in fostering wellbeing and community joy.
Visit ‘Beryl Cook & Friends’, House of Voltaire at Bicester Village
50 Pingle Drive, Bicester, Oxfordshire, OX26 6WD
10 September–25 October 2026, Monday–Sunday, 9 am–9 pm
About Beryl Cook
Beryl Cook (1926-2008) was born in Surrey, England. Leaving school at fourteen, she worked a variety of jobs before moving to London in 1943 to become a showgirl and model. In 1948, she married John Cook, and the couple lived in various parts of England, as well as a period living in Southern Rhodesia (present-day Zimbabwe). While her earliest work dates back to 1960, it was only in her 40s that she began painting more seriously. Cook moved to Plymouth in 1968, opening a guest house. The city would remain a lifelong focus of her work, and it was at the Plymouth Art Gallery that she staged her first solo exhibition in 1975, which set in motion a series of exhibitions, television appearances and publications of her work, which made her a household name.
Today, her works are held in the collections of the National Portrait Gallery, the Government Art Collection, The Box and the Gallery of Modern Art Glasgow, among others. Major exhibitions include The Box, Plymouth (2026); Studio Voltaire, London (2024); A.H.F.T.A.W, New York (2022); Plymouth City Art Gallery, Plymouth (2017); Baltic Centre of Contemporary Art, Gateshead (2007); and Whitechapel Gallery, London (1976).
About Bicester Village
As the founding Village of The Bicester Collection, Bicester Village has established a 30-year reputation for its curation of luxury brands–as well as for unbeatable year-round savings. More than 160 boutiques of globally renowned British and international fashion and lifestyle brands line its beautifully landscaped pedestrianised streets, which are modelled on the villages in surrounding Oxfordshire. Located just under an hour by direct train from London Marylebone, the Village’s boutiques, seamless shopping services and enticing restaurants and cafés come together to provide the perfect day out.
Web | thebicestercollection.com/bicester-village
Instagram | @bicestervillage
Facebook | @bicestervillage
TikTok | @bicestervillage
Image credits
Beryl Cook, 'Birthday Surprises', 1989.
Beryl Cook, 'Window Dresser 2, c.1994.
Beryl Cook, 'Breakfast at Elvira's', 1996.
All images courtesy of ourberylcook.com ©John Cook