Peter Blake: Collage

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Before we say goodbye, he shows me round his studio, and his vast collection of curios, including some lovely sculptures made of driftwood. From precious antiques to worthless bric-a-brac, he clearly loves it all. Blake created an updated version of Sgt. Pepper—with famous figures from Liverpool history—for the campaign for Liverpool to become European Capital of Culture in 2008, and created a series of prints to celebrate Liverpool's status. [16] In 2008, Blake painted a pig for the public art event King Bladud's Pigs in Bath in the city of Bath. [17] Although On the Balcony may look like a collage, it is actually an oil painting. This is a prime example of Blake's signature technique of making metapictures, or paintings of pictures within pictures. The perceived value between the accumulated imagery disappears amongst this singular plane - a thumb in the eye to the hallowed halls of the institution of painting.

Knighted in 2002, an honorary doctor of the Royal College of Art, and with his work represented in major collections throughout the world, Blake's influence is present in the portfolios ofmany highly acclaimed artists of our times. At the Royal College his tutors included John Minton, whose name comes up when Blake discusses Late Period: Battle, a painting that he began in 1964. He describes the process of selecting the subject: ‘For a very short period I had a proper studio which I rented. That meant I had room to do a picture on a large scale. So I thought about what the subject should be and decided at that point that something like a battle would be completely unfashionable. No one else would be painting battles in 1964.’Blake was married to the American-born artist Jann Haworth from 1963 to 1979, and they had two daughters together, Liberty and Daisy. [28] In 1980, Blake met fellow artist Chrissy Wilson, they married in 1987, and have a daughter, Rose. [28] [29] As part of 'The Big Egg Hunt' February 2012 Sir Peter Blake designed an egg on behalf of Dorchester Collection. Blake created the carpet which runs through the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom's Middlesex Guildhall building. [18] Peter Blake’s Pop art artwork Girlie Door, from 1959, is a door painted red, with images of women and movie stars, such as Marilyn Monroe and Sophia Loren. All are staring directly at the viewer. The work of collage and assemblage on hardboard recalls a bedroom of a teenaged boy. Self Portrait with Badges (1961) Self Portrait with Badges (1961) Peter Blake. Tate, London, United Kingdom. He recalled staging a Tate Modern drawing masterclass for postgraduate students some years ago: “Quite a lot from the Slade. None of them knew how to draw because their teachers didn’t know how to draw. That’s the basis of it. You now have people who are more interested in conceptual art – which is actually what you do if you can’t draw… I don’t go into open studios for young artists any more because I lose the will to live… There’s no passion and no originality… Sir Peter Blake who first exhibited at Bohun Gallery in 1979 presents his new body of work, entitled 'Dazzle Alphabet', together with selected work from the earlier Alphabet Suites.

Peter Blake (b. 1932) has remained constant and groundbreaking in his exploration of the medium of collage throughout his career spanning seven decades. Most recognised for his iconic 1967 cover for The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, Blake already understood the potential of collage as an art form as a student at the Royal College of Art in the 1950s, where his reputation as a founder and key proponent of the Pop Art movement was established.At the age of 70, Blake became only the third British painter to be knighted, in a ceremony conducted by Prince Charles (because the Queen was on a state visit to Canada at the time). After the honor was bestowed, Blake said, “I’m very excited mainly because there are so few knighthoods to painters. It’s usually sculptors and architects. I’m very happy to get it on behalf of all painters. I left college in 1956 so I’ve had almost 50 years as a painter. That’s why this is so nice.” The Independent Group, a group of artists, architects, and art critics, formed with an art centric agenda, in London, England. Talks were lively and included discussions on where fine art and popular culture met. Featuring works from across his seven-decade career, the show focuses on Blake’s enduring love of collage. His most famous work in this technique was the cover for the 1967 Beatles’ album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (co-designed with his then wife Jann Haworth) – in which the band pose with cardboard cut-outs and waxworks of their heroes. We finish up at his desk, where the magic happens, where he shows me his latest project – a picaresque fantasy which fuses all his passions, from Edwardian engravings to Hollywood pin-ups. Livingstone, Marco (2016). "A Partial Portrait of Leslie Waddington as Art Collector". The Leslie Waddington Collection: Part 1. Christie's, London: 152–153.

Exh: Five Painters, I.C.A., January–February 1958 (8); The Guggenheim Painting Award, Whitechapel Art Gallery, May–June 1958 (45). At age 14 he began attending the Gravesend Technical College Junior Art School where he learned creative foundations such as life drawing skills, typography and joinery. It was there that he was first introduced to highbrow culture such as fine art and classical music. However, he never lost touch with his working-class roots, continuing to pursue interests in jazz clubs, football, speedway, and wrestling, as well as remaining close with his mother and aunt. Peter Blake (b. 1932) has remained constant and ground-breaking in his exploration of the medium of collage throughout his career spanning seven decades. Most recognised for his iconic 1967 cover for The Beatles’ Sgt.Lit: Roger Coleman, ‘The Art of Counterfeit’ in Painter & Sculptor, I, No.1, 1958, pp.22–3, repr. p.22; Robert Melville, ‘The Durable Expendables of Peter Blake’ in Motif, X, winter 1962–3, pp.18, 20, repr. p.14. An avid collector, Blake's collages combine junkyard treasures and found objects with images from popular culture. He revisits themes drawn from his childhood - the entertainments of the circus, the glamour of the cinema and the showmanship of the wrestling ring - weaving detailed, often humorous narratives. From his early paintings depicting assembled fragments of popular imagery, to his found-object constructions and his most recent inkjet print collages, Blake has broadened the scope of what collage can be and communicate. After working as a graphic designer, Peter Blake enrolled in The School of Painting at the Royal College of Art, in London, in the early 1950s. There he met instructor Ruskin Spear, who was well known for his Dada-inspired art, using everyday objects. This gave Peter Blake the nudge to incorporate popular culture in his work, including images of wrestlers and strippers. For his dissertation he researched music hall nudity. Adding naked women to the stage was the new way of attracting audiences.