Description
British artist David Haughton, 1924 – 1991, was known primarily for his meticulously observed and rendered drawings, paintings and etchings of the former mining town of St Just-in-Penwith in Cornwall, and for his legacy as an inspirational teacher. Haughton was also highly regarded for brightly coloured semi-abstract paintings based on grid structures and calligraphic forms made in the 1960s and 70s.
David Haughton: Art, Life and the Cornish Landscape explores the artistic and creative gravitational pull of Cornwall held for Haughton, and how his devotion to this pocket of land shaped his career as an artist.
Haughton was a key figure in the emergence of St Ives as an international centre for modern art in the late 1940s. David Haughton: Art, Life and the Cornish Landscape re-examines Haughton’s contribution to post-war British art and offers theories of why, despite critical success during his lifetime and representation in public collections including the Arts Council and V&A Museum, his name is less well known today. The biography contextualises his career in relation to his friends and contemporaries including Prunella Clough, Barbara Hepworth, Rose Hilton, Ben Nicholson and Bryan Wynter (to name but a few), all recognised as leading artists of their generation.
About the author
Writer and curator Frances Lord grew up in the artistic community of St Ives in West Cornwall giving her a unique perspective of the Cornish art scene and its history. She graduated with distinction from the University of East Anglia’s MA in Biography and Creative Non-Fiction in 2021 and also has a MA in Art History from Birkbeck, University of London. Frances worked at the Crafts Council, South East Arts and was Director of The Hampshire Sculpture Trust before going freelance in 2000. During her freelance career as a curator she specialised in site-specific and cross-discipline commissioning projects for the public realm. She has commissioned many well-known visual artists and makers, and worked with poets, filmmakers and composers for contexts as varied as historic parks and gardens, hospitals and schools.
