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拍品專文
This charming collage was made the year following Paolozzi's return to London, having lived in Paris since 1947. Between 1949 and 1955, Paolozzi taught Textile Design at the Central School of Arts and Crafts, where he worked alongside figures such as Richard Hamilton, William Turnbull, and Nigel Henderson. While there, he formed important relationships with other artists and designers, but notably with his student Terence Conran, who would later become a key figure in British design. Conran confessed to being struck by Paolozzi’s seemingly innate skill in assembling everyday objects - such as food, glassware or comic-strips - into vibrant collages like the present work. Conran recalled that the artist would do so 'with enviable ease and confidence. He'd dip a pen into black ink and every mark he made was just right, even the blots seemed totally under his control . . .' (The Design Museum, Head of Invention, designmuseum.org).
A close friendship soon developed between the two, who incidentally lived near each other in West Kensington - Paolozzi on Holland Road and Conran in Warwick Gardens. After Conran completed his studies in 1950, he and Paolozzi shared a garage studio in Bethnal Green, where Conran introduced Paolozzi to welding techniques. Post-war Britain was a time of scarcity, so the pair salvaged metal from building sites and sourced textiles from Petticoat Lane market to use in their work (Nicholas Ind, Terence Conran, London, 1995, pp. 50-53).
This collage is dedicated ‘To Brenda, from Eduardo Paolozzi, August 1950’: Brenda Davison was a Cambridge-trained architect who had recently renovated Conran’s home in Warwick Gardens. She worked at Dennis Lennon’s architectural office, where Conran was employed as a junior designer and the two later married (ibid). It was likely executed either at the Central School or in the spacious kitchen at Warwick Gardens, where Paolozzi frequently visited and where extensive creative discussions took place.
Paolozzi’s impact on Conran extended beyond art and design - he also introduced him to food: 'there was still rationing in Britain and we pretty much survived on Spam sandwiches, which is no way to live. But Eduardo used to invite me to his flat because he got these wonderful parcels of food sent over from Italy. One night he cooked me a squid risotto with black ink and it was like nothing I’d ever tasted' (The Design Museum, Head of Invention, designmuseum.org). Hence, the inclusion of a squid, grapes and wine in the composition of the present work is likely a thoughtful tribute to the many evenings and meals shared between Paolozzi, Conran and Davison around the kitchen table.
A close friendship soon developed between the two, who incidentally lived near each other in West Kensington - Paolozzi on Holland Road and Conran in Warwick Gardens. After Conran completed his studies in 1950, he and Paolozzi shared a garage studio in Bethnal Green, where Conran introduced Paolozzi to welding techniques. Post-war Britain was a time of scarcity, so the pair salvaged metal from building sites and sourced textiles from Petticoat Lane market to use in their work (Nicholas Ind, Terence Conran, London, 1995, pp. 50-53).
This collage is dedicated ‘To Brenda, from Eduardo Paolozzi, August 1950’: Brenda Davison was a Cambridge-trained architect who had recently renovated Conran’s home in Warwick Gardens. She worked at Dennis Lennon’s architectural office, where Conran was employed as a junior designer and the two later married (ibid). It was likely executed either at the Central School or in the spacious kitchen at Warwick Gardens, where Paolozzi frequently visited and where extensive creative discussions took place.
Paolozzi’s impact on Conran extended beyond art and design - he also introduced him to food: 'there was still rationing in Britain and we pretty much survived on Spam sandwiches, which is no way to live. But Eduardo used to invite me to his flat because he got these wonderful parcels of food sent over from Italy. One night he cooked me a squid risotto with black ink and it was like nothing I’d ever tasted' (The Design Museum, Head of Invention, designmuseum.org). Hence, the inclusion of a squid, grapes and wine in the composition of the present work is likely a thoughtful tribute to the many evenings and meals shared between Paolozzi, Conran and Davison around the kitchen table.