Oscar Mellor (7 June 1921 - 2005) was an English surrealist artist and publisher of poetry. Events 1099 - The First Crusade: The Siege of Jerusalem begins Year 1921 ( MCMXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1921 calendar of the Gregorian calendar Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early-1920s and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members The definition of an artist is wide-ranging and covers a broad spectrum of Activities to do with creating Art, practicing the Arts and/or demonstrating An associate of the Birmingham Surrealists in the 1940s, he founded the Fantasy Press in the 1950s, publishing works by poets such as Philip Larkin, Kingsley Amis and Thom Gunn. Birmingham Surrealists were an informal grouping of artists and intellectuals associated with the Surrealist movement in art based in Birmingham, England The Fantasy Press was an English publisher of Poetry between 1951 and 1959. Philip Arthur Larkin, CH, CBE, FRSL (9 August 1922 – 2 December 1985 was an English Poet, Novelist and Jazz Sir Kingsley William Amis, CBE ( April 16, 1922 &ndash October 22, 1995) was an English Novelist, Thom Gunn ( 29 August 1929 - 25 April 2004) was an Anglo-American poet [1]
Although he became best known as a publisher, he saw himself primarily as an artist whose business activities existed to support his painting. [2]
Biography
Oscar Mellor was born and educated in Manchester, moving to Birmingham with his family in 1939 and serving in the Royal Air Force during World War II. Birmingham ( ˈbɜːmɪŋəm Ber -ming-um World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including [1] He had been painting surrealist watercolours from the age of 15, but took up painting more seriously on returning from the war in 1946, studying part-time at the Birmingham School of Art and the Ruskin School and becoming an associate of Conroy Maddox and the Birmingham Surrealists. Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early-1920s and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members Watercolor ( US) or Watercolour ( UK) (and "aquarelle" in French is a Painting method The Birmingham School of Art was a municipal art school based in the centre of Birmingham, England. The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, known as The Ruskin, is an experimental Art school and Research institute at the University of Oxford Conroy Maddox ( 27 December 1912 &ndash 14 January 2005) was an English Surrealist painter, collagist Birmingham Surrealists were an informal grouping of artists and intellectuals associated with the Surrealist movement in art based in Birmingham, England [3]
In 1947 he was a founder member of the Birmingham Artists Committee - which existed to organise exhibitions of avant-garde artists ignored by the conservative Royal Birmingham Society of Artists - exhibiting with them alongside artists such as John Melville, William Gear, Emmy Bridgwater and Desmond Morris between 1947 and 1951. The Birmingham Artists Committee was an English Artist collective that organised exhibitions of Painting and Sculpture in Birmingham The Royal Birmingham Society of Artists or RBSA is a Learned society of Artists and an Art gallery based in the Jewellery Quarter John Melville ( August 25 1902 - December 8 1986) was an English surrealist artist described by Michel Remy in his book William Gear (1915-1997 was a painter, born on 2 August 1915 in Methil in the south-east of Fife, Scotland. Emma Frith Bridgwater ( November 10 1906 - March 13 1999) known as Emmy Bridgwater, was an English Artist and For the Australian rugby league footballer coach and administrator see Des Morris Desmond John Morris (born 24 January 1928 [1]
Moving to Oxford in 1948 to continue his studies at The Ruskin, he briefly went into business with Conroy Maddox before establishing himself as a publisher and photographer in Swinford, Oxfordshire, founding the Fantasy Press in 1951 and producing regular photographic work for Oxford Playhouse. Oxford is currently bidding for the 2010 Wikimania Conference Oxford () is a city, and the County town of Oxfordshire, Swinford in the English county of Oxfordshire (formerly in Berkshire) is a small settlement in the Civil parish of Cumnor. The Fantasy Press was an English publisher of Poetry between 1951 and 1959. The Oxford Playhouse (often just known as The Playhouse by locals is an independent theatre in Beaumont Street, Oxford, opposite the Ashmolean [1]
From 1969 until 1973 he was a lecturer in photography at Exeter College of Art, after which he returned full-time to painting[4] until shortly before his death in 2005.
References
- ^ a b c d Sidey, Tessa (2000), “Biographies: Oscar Mellor”, in Sidey, Surrealism in Birmingham 1935-1954, Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery, pp. 59-60, ISBN 0-7093-0235-5.
- ^ You Muddy Fools Letter by Trevor Denning to the London Review of Books, 7 February 2002
- ^ Tulip, Phoebe (2000), “Oscar Mellor: a Private View”, in Sidey, Surrealism in Birmingham 1935-1954, Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery, pp. 47-50, ISBN 0-7093-0235-5.
- ^ The Eynsham Record, Number 19, 2002 "Oscar Mellor, Printer & Artist", p34
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic