Peter Lanyon
Encyclopedia
Peter Lanyon (8 February 1918 – 31 August 1964) was a Cornish
painter of landscapes leaning heavily towards abstraction. He also made constructions, pottery and collage
.
Lanyon was born in St Ives, Cornwall
, the only son of W H Lanyon, an amateur photographer and musician. He was educated at St Erbyn's School, Penzance and Clifton College
. St Ives remained his base, and he received after-school painting lessons from Borlase Smart. In 1937 he met Adrian Stokes
, who is thought to have introduced him to contemporary painting and sculpture and who advised him to go to the Euston Road School
, where he studied for four months under Victor Pasmore
. In 1936-37 he also attended Penzance School of Art. In 1939 he met established artists Ben Nicholson
, Barbara Hepworth
and Naum Gabo
, who had moved to St Ives on the outbreak of war. Lanyon received private art tuition from Nicholson.
The character of his work changed completely and he became very involved with making constructions. Throughout the 1940s the influence of Nicholson and Gabo remained strongly visible in his work
From 1940 to 1945 he served with the Royal Air Force
in the Western Desert, Palestine
and Italy
. In 1946 he married Sheila St John Browne. Six children were born to the couple between 1947 and 1957. Also in 1946 he became an active member of the Crypt Group of Artists, St Ives. During the 1950s he became established as a leading figure in the St. Ives group of artists.
Lanyon took up gliding as a pastime and used the resulting experience extensively in his paintings. He died in Taunton
, Somerset
, as the result of injuries received in a gliding accident and is buried in St. Uny's Church, Lelant
.
While Lanyon was becoming increasingly conscious of the English landscape tradition American art sped his development towards a looser and more open kind of painting.
Peter Lanyon died 31 August 1964 at Taunton
,
Cornish people
The Cornish are a people associated with Cornwall, a county and Duchy in the south-west of the United Kingdom that is seen in some respects as distinct from England, having more in common with the other Celtic parts of the United Kingdom such as Wales, as well as with other Celtic nations in Europe...
painter of landscapes leaning heavily towards abstraction. He also made constructions, pottery and collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
.
Lanyon was born in St Ives, Cornwall
St Ives, Cornwall
St Ives is a seaside town, civil parish and port in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town lies north of Penzance and west of Camborne on the coast of the Celtic Sea. In former times it was commercially dependent on fishing. The decline in fishing, however, caused a shift in commercial...
, the only son of W H Lanyon, an amateur photographer and musician. He was educated at St Erbyn's School, Penzance and Clifton College
Clifton College
Clifton College is a co-educational independent school in Clifton, Bristol, England, founded in 1862. In its early years it was notable for emphasising science in the curriculum, and for being less concerned with social elitism, e.g. by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated...
. St Ives remained his base, and he received after-school painting lessons from Borlase Smart. In 1937 he met Adrian Stokes
Adrian Stokes (critic)
Adrian Stokes was a British writer and painter, known principally as an influential art critic. He was also a published poet.- Background :...
, who is thought to have introduced him to contemporary painting and sculpture and who advised him to go to the Euston Road School
Euston Road School
The Euston Road School was a group of English painters, active in London between 1937 and 1939.William Coldstream, Victor Pasmore, Claude Rogers, Maurice Field and Graham Bell set up a School of Drawing and Painting in Euston Road in 1937; other associated artists included Lawrence Gowing, Tom...
, where he studied for four months under Victor Pasmore
Victor Pasmore
Edwin John Victor Pasmore was a British artist and architect. He pioneered the development of abstract art in Britain in the 1940s and 1950s.-Biography:...
. In 1936-37 he also attended Penzance School of Art. In 1939 he met established artists Ben Nicholson
Ben Nicholson
Benjamin Lauder "Ben" Nicholson, OM was a British painter of abstract compositions , landscape and still-life.-Background and Training:...
, Barbara Hepworth
Barbara Hepworth
Dame Barbara Hepworth DBE was an English sculptor. Her work exemplifies Modernism, and with such contemporaries as Ivon Hitchens, Henry Moore, Ben Nicholson, Naum Gabo she helped to develop modern art in Britain.-Life and work:Jocelyn Barbara Hepworth was born on 10 January 1903 in Wakefield,...
and Naum Gabo
Naum Gabo
Naum Gabo KBE, born Naum Neemia Pevsner was a prominent Russian sculptor in the Constructivism movement and a pioneer of Kinetic Art.-Early life:...
, who had moved to St Ives on the outbreak of war. Lanyon received private art tuition from Nicholson.
The character of his work changed completely and he became very involved with making constructions. Throughout the 1940s the influence of Nicholson and Gabo remained strongly visible in his work
From 1940 to 1945 he served with the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
in the Western Desert, Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. In 1946 he married Sheila St John Browne. Six children were born to the couple between 1947 and 1957. Also in 1946 he became an active member of the Crypt Group of Artists, St Ives. During the 1950s he became established as a leading figure in the St. Ives group of artists.
Lanyon took up gliding as a pastime and used the resulting experience extensively in his paintings. He died in Taunton
Taunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, as the result of injuries received in a gliding accident and is buried in St. Uny's Church, Lelant
St. Uny's Church, Lelant
St Uny's Church, Lelant, is the Church of England parish church of Lelant, Cornwall, England, UK. It is dedicated to St Uny who is also the patron saint of Redruth....
.
Life and career
- 1918 Born in St Ives, Cornwall.
- 1948 Travelled around Italy in the summer.
- 1949 Founder member of Penwith Society of Arts in Cornwall.
- 1950 First one-man exhibition at the Lefevre Gallery, London. Began teaching at the Bath Academy of Art, Corsham (until 1957) where William Scott was senior painting master Invited by Arts Council to contribute to their Festival of Britain exhibition 1953. Spent four months living in Italy on Italian government scholarship Elected member of the Newlyn Society of Artists.
- 1954 Awarded Critics Prize, by the British section of the International Association of Art Critics.
- 1957–60 Ran art school, St Peter's Loft at St Ives with Terry Frost and William Redgrave.
- 1957 Visited New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
for his first one-man show there, with Catherine Viviano Gallery and met Rothko, Motherwell and other artists, critics and collectors. He greatly admired the new American painting he saw both in Tate's exhibition 'Modern Art in the United States' and on his trip to New York. Rothko's work particularly thrilled him.
While Lanyon was becoming increasingly conscious of the English landscape tradition American art sped his development towards a looser and more open kind of painting.
- 1959 he was awarded second prize, 2nd John Moores Exhibition, Liverpool. He began gliding, as he explained 'to get a more complete knowledge of the landscape'.
- 1961 he was elected Chairman of the Newlyn Society of Artists, Cornwall and was elected a Bard of the Gorseth KernowGorseth KernowGorseth Kernow is a non-political Cornish organisation, which exists to maintain the national Celtic spirit of Cornwall in the United Kingdom.-History:...
, with the bardic nameBardic nameA bardic name is a pseudonym, used in Wales, Cornwall and Brittany, by poets and other artists, especially those involved in the eisteddfod movement....
Marghak an Gwyns (Rider of the Winds) for services to Cornish art. - 1962 he spent seven months painting mural commissioned for house of Stanley J Seeger, New Jersey.
- 1963 he spent three months as visiting painter, San Antonio Art Institute in Texas, also visiting Mexico.
- 1964 he visited PraguePraguePrague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
and Bratislava to lecture for the British CouncilBritish CouncilThe British Council is a United Kingdom-based organisation specialising in international educational and cultural opportunities. It is registered as a charity both in England and Wales, and in Scotland...
.
Peter Lanyon died 31 August 1964 at Taunton
Taunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
,