Radcliffe Camera Oxford. Original Guinness Lithograph after Richard Guyatt, 1962

Description: Original Guinness series lithograph, after the listed artist Richard Guyatt (1914 - 2007), created in 1962, printed by the Curwen Press and published by Guinness. Titled "Radcliffe Camera" a nocturn depicting the iconic Oxford University building at the heart of the city, in the foreground, a couple of students, arm in arm, walking in the moonlight. See full publication details below. Signed in the plate lower left and inscribed with the title, artist and publication details lower right. Lithograph, printed in in colours on wove paper, in a later stained and gilded wood frame with a new acid free mount. Lithograph in excellent original condition, a very clean and strong impression; some light age toning around the outside edge of the sheet, unseen when mounted (see photos); frame in good clean condition, mount new (see photos). Image size; 38.2cm x 50.5cm, frame size 59cm x 75.5cm. Delivered ready to hang. Comes with our Certificate of Authenticity - guaranteed authentic and original. One of four lithographs from the Guinness series I have listed, one from 1956 and three from 1962. Overseas buyers, please check delivery charges to your destination through the eBay global shipping program. Professor Richard Guyatt 1914 - 2007British designer, illustrator and academic.Richard Guyatt has been described as "one of the 20th century's most seminal figures in the world of graphic design". He was the youngest ever professor at the Royal College of Art on appointment in 1948 and was Rector of the Royal College of Art from 1978–1981. He worked for the Royal College of Art for 34 years, and also acted as consultant designer to Wedgwood, WH Smith and other British companies. Guyatt created coins for the Royal Mint and designed postage stamps for the Royal Mail and designed posters for Shell and Guinness. He was made a CBE in 1969.For the 1951 Festival of Britain, he co-designed the Lion and the Unicorn Pavilion.Sir Hugh Casson wrote on Guyatt's retirement from the Royal College of Art in 1981, ". . . all his life Dick Guyatt has readily accepted and punctiliously dealt with teaching, designing, consulting, illustrating, lecturing, administrating; bringing to each problem, however small, that same quality of the true professional, the ruthless determination to achieve by rational methods aims that have been conceived in passion."In 2000 he was awarded the Sir Misha Black award and was added to the College of Medallists.Gerald Beckwith, writing in The Independent after Guyatt's death, said "He was one of our last remaining examples of a genuine Edwardian gentleman, to whom the qualities of duty, fidelity, truthfulness and manners were paramount. To the end he practised all these with a lightness and impeccability of style entirely his own." The Radcliffe Camera (colloquially known as the "Rad Cam" or "The Camera"; from Latin camera, meaning 'room') is a building of the University of Oxford, England, designed by James Gibbs in a Baroque style and built in 1737–49 to house the Radcliffe Science Library. It is sited to the south of the Old Bodleian, north of the Church of St Mary the Virgin, and between Brasenose College to the west and All Souls College to the east. The Radcliffe Camera's circularity, its position in the heart of Oxford, and its separation from other buildings make it the focal point of the University of Oxford, and as such it is almost always included in shorthand visual representations of the university. The Radcliffe Camera is not open to the public. The Guinness Prints. Launched in 1956, The Guinness Prints began with a set of six lithographs. The initial project was led by artist printmaker Barnett Freedman, while advising Guinness Breweries on the role of art in its communications with the public. A desire to brighten public spaces led to many commercial organisations like Shell Mex and London Transport commissioning artists to create public works and bring art to the masses. As well as fulfilling the mid-century idea of ‘Art for All’, these prints provide a strong sense of social history by capturing the interests of everyday people at the time, capturing the sense of optimism and democratisation of art in the post-war period. Each artist was given a copy of the first Guinness Book of Records from which to choose a record to illustrate, from records in darts, football and cycling, to the world’s heaviest woman, longest pleasure pier and busiest port. The subject and design were chosen carefully by the artists to ensure the prints fulfilled their two-fold purpose: to brighten up the often drab interiors of public houses, canteens and working men’s clubs, and advertise the Guinness Book of Records to a wider audience. The images therefore had to be bright and attractive in order to be seen in the often smoky and dimly lit pubs. The first series of six lithographs was published in 1956 and the second series of six in 1962. The prints were never sold but were issued to Guinness selling pubs and clubs to help advertise the launch and early publications of ‘The Guinness Book of Records’. Because of their ephemeral nature few survived and most that have are in very poor condition due to cigarette smoke damage, having been pinned directly onto the establishment’s wall rather than being framed.

Price: 415 GBP

Location: Leyburn

End Time: 2024-12-29T15:46:18.000Z

Shipping Cost: 84.21 GBP