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Selwyn Image

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Selwyn Image
Selwyn Image 1900
Born17 February 1849
Bodiam,Sussex
Died21 August 1930(1930-08-21)(aged 81)
NationalityBritish
Known forStained glassdesign, book illustration, writing and poetry
MovementArts and Crafts Movement
SpouseJanet Image

Selwyn Image(17 February 1849,Bodiam,Sussex – 21 August 1930, London) was a British artist, designer, writer and poet associated with theArts and Crafts Movement.He designed stained glass windows, furniture and embroidery, and illustrated books. He was the seventh Slade Professor of Fine Art at theUniversity of Oxfordfrom 1910 to 1916.

Early life and education

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Selwyn Image was born inBodiam,Sussex, on 17 February 1849 to the Reverend John Image (c. 1802–1878), vicar ofBodiamand Mary Maxwell (néeHinds c. 1807–1857).[1]He attendedMarlborough CollegeandNew College, Oxford,in 1868 where he studied drawing underJohn Ruskin.[2]Intending on entering the clergy and following his father as Vicar ofBodiam,Image took Holy Orders at the age of 24. He was ordained deacon in 1872 and priest the next year. He was a curate atTottenhamand later atSt. Anne's, Soho.Image began studying art withA. H. MackmurdoandRuskin'sassistant, Arthur Burgess in 1880.[3]Image eventually abandoned the clergy in 1882.[4][5]

Century Guild of Artists and Art Workers' Guild

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Image was associated with theCentury Guild of Artistsin London, founded by prominent architect and designerA. H. MackmurdoandHerbert Percy Horne.With Mackmurdo. He established the Guild's workshops which produced furniture, wallpaper, primarily domestic design such as furniture, stained glass, metalwork and decorative painting. He co-edited the Guild's magazine,The Hobby Horse,from 1886 to 1892.[4]He was an active member of theArt Workers' Guildin London and became a Master of the guild in 1900.[5]

Stained glass designer

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One of Image's firststained glassdesigns,The Seasons,manufactured byJames Powell & Sons,was exhibited at theParis International Exhibitionin 1878. Image's designs were influenced by the work ofWilliam Morris.Image's early designs, composed of individual figures against a floral background, was inspired by Morris's previous work. Image described one ofMorris & Co.earliest stained glass commissions, one of a pair of two-light windows (1862) depicting the four archangels at St. Michael and All Angels church inBrighton'as one of the finest modern windows I know of.' "The early window, designed byFord Madox Brownwas the inspiration for Image'sArchangelwindow atSt Mary's Church in Mortehoe.[6]

The basis of Image's stained glass design was a "simplicity of treatment, not only in figure drawing and ornament—which closely match his contemporary graphic work, such as for the Century GuildThe Hobby Horse—but also in the use of leading. In an article published inThe Hobby Horsein 1890, Image expounded his principles of stained glass design, emphasizing that qualities of 'richness and brilliance of effect... in no small measure depend upon the management of the leads' ".[6]

Image and well-known stained glass artistChristopher Whallmet in the 1880s and became lasting friends. Whall and Image were among the earliest pioneers and important contributors to theArts and Crafts Movement.Image designed fewer than thirty windows during his career, but a number of cartoons (designs) were displayed atArts and Crafts Exhibitions.Several of Image's designs were illustrated in books and magazines where Image acquired a wide following.Christopher Whallincluded one of Image's cartoons in his influential manualStained Glass Work(1905), "as an example of the 'simple and severe' style of drawing best suited to the medium".[6]

Image was influential in the work of a number ofstained glassartists, including two women:Mary J. Newill(1860–1947) and Helen Coombe (1864–1937). Mary J. Newill was a talented artist-craftsman who trained at theBirmingham Municipal School of Artin the 1880s and 1890s. Helen Coombe (1864–1937) was a student of Image at theSlade School of Fine Artand her design for theMary and Marthawindow was displayed at the 1896 Arts and Crafts Exhibition and showed the influence of Image as artistic mentor.[6]

Writer, lecturer and poet

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Image was an influential writer on design and the first Slade Professor of Fine Arts at Oxford (1910 to 1916).[5]He published a number of essays and contributed introductions and chapters to scholarly publications.

Between December 1887 and February 1888, Image gave a series of four lectures on modern art at Willis' Rooms.Oscar Wildeattended at least the second lecture, which he reviewed inThe Sunday Timeson 25 January 1888.[7]

Image also wrote poetry, which he eventually collected in his 1894 bookPoems and Carols.

Other work

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Image's line-block design for the cover of the inaugural 1884 issue of the Hobby Horse, the Guild's publication, is widely known. Other celebrated works include the design of embroideries for theRoyal School of Needleworkand bookbindings such as that for the novelStefania(1893).[8]

In 1900, Image was hired as a designer for the Glasgow furniture manufacturer, Wylie and Lochead.[5]

Death and legacy

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Grave of Selwyn Image inHighgate Cemetery

Image died atHollowayon 21 August 1930 and was buried on the eastern side ofHighgate Cemetery.[4]Two years after his death, selected poems and later his letters, edited byMackmurdowas published.[8]

Stained glass work

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Selected publications

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  • Image, Selwyn (1894).Poems and Carols (1894).London: E. Matthews. p. 47.
  • Image, Selwyn (1929).Some Reflections on the Art of Thomas Rowlandson & George Morland.London: Print Collector's Club.
  • Mackmurdo, Arthur Heygate, ed. (1932).The Poems of Selwyn Image(1st ed.). London: Elkin, Matthews and Marrot.[4]
  • Poems (1932), edited byArthur Heygate Mackmurdo[4]
  • Mackmurdo, Arthur Heygate, ed. (1932).Selwyn Image Letters.London: Grant Richards Pronto Limited. p. 219.
  • Miles, Alfred H. (2011).The Sacred Poets of the Nineteenth Century Edward Hayes Plumptre to Selwyn Image.BiblioLife. p. 440.ISBN978-1113886460.

See also

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References

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  1. ^Jones, Helen Caroline (2004)."Image, Selwyn (1849–1930)".Oxford Dictionary of National Biography(online ed.). Oxford University Press.doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/34093.Retrieved22 July2018.(Subscription orUK public library membershiprequired.)
  2. ^"Selwyn Image (Biographical Details)".British Museum.Retrieved21 July2018.
  3. ^Tildesley, Matthew B. (2007).The century guild hobby horse and Oscar Wilde: a study of British little magazines, 1884–1897(PhD). Durham University.
  4. ^abcdeCatalogue of A. H. Mackmurdo and the Century Guild Collection.William Morris Gallery Walthamstow. 1967. p. 48.
  5. ^abcdefBenezit Dictionary of British Graphic Artists and Illustrators, Volume 1.Oxford University Press. 2012. p. 1344.ISBN978-0199923052.Retrieved21 July2018.
  6. ^abcdefCormack, Peter (2015).Arts & Crafts Stained Glass.Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art. p. 354.ISBN978-0300209709.
  7. ^Tildesley, Matthew B. (July 2010). "The Sketches of Dorian Gray: Oscar Wilde and The Century Guild Hobby Horse".The Wildean(37).
  8. ^ab"OVERVIEW Selwyn Image (1849—1930) designer".Oxford Index.Retrieved21 July2018.
  9. ^"Brownies".Victoria and Albert Museum Collections.Retrieved22 July2018.
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