June 29th sees the opening of an exhibition at Dulwich Picture Gallery in the UK - featuring a rather unlikely pairing of painters.

'Twombly and Poussin: Arcadian Painters' is a fascinating and unique exploration of contemporary artist Cy Twombly and 17th century classical painter Nicolas Poussin.

Looking at the two figures side by side for the first time, and in part, spurred by Twombly's comments about Poussin; ( “I would’ve liked to have been Poussin, if I’d had a choice, in another time.”) the two artists also share remarkable similarities despite being separated by three centuries.

The connections are highlighted through the key themes of Arcadia and the pastoral, Venus and Eros, anxiety and theatricality and mythological figures that are central to both artists' work.

The exhibition will also be accompanied by the British premiere of Tacita Dean's new 16mm film portrait of Cy Twombly, Edwin Parker (2011).

As part of the exhibition, the Gallery is also extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to display Poussin’s Sacraments painted between 1637 and 1642 for his Roman friend and patron Cassiano dal Pozzo. As a set, Poussin’s Sacraments represent a high point in Western European art.

The exhibition runs until the 25th of September 2011.