Bryan Robertson (curator)
Encyclopedia
Bryan Robertson OBE
(1 April 1925 – 18 November 2002) was an English curator and arts manager described by Studio International as "the greatest Director the Tate Gallery
never had".
Robertson was born in London and educated at Battersea Grammar School
. Unfit for military service, he became a junior editor on The Studio magazine in 1945. The art-historian and curator Kenneth Clark
became a mentor, funding a year in Paris for study. In 1949 Robertson became curator at the Heffer Gallery in Cambridge
and mounted a ground-breaking exhibition of contemporary French art at the Fitzwilliam Museum
. From 1952 to 1968, as curator of the Whitechapel Art Gallery, he created an influential programme that gave major presentations of works by Jackson Pollock
, Mark Rothko
and Robert Rauschenberg
and the 1956 exhibition This Is Tomorrow
. He also revived interest in the work of Barbara Hepworth
and organised exhibitions of Turner
(staggeringly, the first solo show of Turner since the mid-1800s) and Stubbs
. Robertson was key in promoting the careers of many emerging British artists; Anthony Caro
, David Hockney
, Bridget Riley
, William G. Tucker
, and Phillip King. Robertson placed public education at the heart of the Whitechapel programme giving space to exhibitions of work from schools.
Robertson's period at the Whitechapel transformed the profile of the Gallery at a time when it did not have regular funding from the Arts Council of Great Britain
, and he was regarded as a frontrunner to take over at the Tate Gallery in 1964 following the retirement of John Rothenstein
but due to politics lost out to Norman Reid
. He became director of the museum of the State University of New York
for five years and wrote articles and monographs.
Robertson sat on the Arts Council art committee between 1958 and 1961 and again from 1980 to 1984. As a freelance curator in the 1980s, he mounted the magnificent Raoul Dufy
show at the Hayward Gallery
(1983), as well as an important retrospective of Ceri Richards
at the Tate.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(1 April 1925 – 18 November 2002) was an English curator and arts manager described by Studio International as "the greatest Director the Tate Gallery
Tate Gallery
The Tate is an institution that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of British Art, and International Modern and Contemporary Art...
never had".
Robertson was born in London and educated at Battersea Grammar School
Battersea Grammar School
Battersea Grammar School was a Voluntary-Controlled Secondary Grammar School in South London. It was established in Battersea by the Sir Walter St John Trust in 1875 and moved to larger premises in Streatham in 1936....
. Unfit for military service, he became a junior editor on The Studio magazine in 1945. The art-historian and curator Kenneth Clark
Kenneth Clark
Kenneth McKenzie Clark, Baron Clark, OM, CH, KCB, FBA was a British author, museum director, broadcaster, and one of the best-known art historians of his generation...
became a mentor, funding a year in Paris for study. In 1949 Robertson became curator at the Heffer Gallery in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
and mounted a ground-breaking exhibition of contemporary French art at the Fitzwilliam Museum
Fitzwilliam Museum
The Fitzwilliam Museum is the art and antiquities museum of the University of Cambridge, located on Trumpington Street opposite Fitzwilliam Street in central Cambridge, England. It receives around 300,000 visitors annually. Admission is free....
. From 1952 to 1968, as curator of the Whitechapel Art Gallery, he created an influential programme that gave major presentations of works by Jackson Pollock
Jackson Pollock
Paul Jackson Pollock , known as Jackson Pollock, was an influential American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. During his lifetime, Pollock enjoyed considerable fame and notoriety. He was regarded as a mostly reclusive artist. He had a volatile personality, and...
, Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko, born Marcus Rothkowitz , was a Russian-born American painter. He is classified as an abstract expressionist, although he himself rejected this label, and even resisted classification as an "abstract painter".- Childhood :Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Vitebsk Province, Russian...
and Robert Rauschenberg
Robert Rauschenberg
Robert Rauschenberg was an American artist who came to prominence in the 1950s transition from Abstract Expressionism to Pop Art. Rauschenberg is well-known for his "Combines" of the 1950s, in which non-traditional materials and objects were employed in innovative combinations...
and the 1956 exhibition This Is Tomorrow
This is Tomorrow
This Is Tomorrow was a seminal art exhibition in August 1956 at the Whitechapel Art Gallery, facilitated by curator Bryan Robertson. The core of the exhibition was the ICA Independent Group.-History:...
. He also revived interest in the work of Barbara Hepworth
Barbara Hepworth
Dame Barbara Hepworth DBE was an English sculptor. Her work exemplifies Modernism, and with such contemporaries as Ivon Hitchens, Henry Moore, Ben Nicholson, Naum Gabo she helped to develop modern art in Britain.-Life and work:Jocelyn Barbara Hepworth was born on 10 January 1903 in Wakefield,...
and organised exhibitions of Turner
J. M. W. Turner
Joseph Mallord William Turner RA was an English Romantic landscape painter, watercolourist and printmaker. Turner was considered a controversial figure in his day, but is now regarded as the artist who elevated landscape painting to an eminence rivalling history painting...
(staggeringly, the first solo show of Turner since the mid-1800s) and Stubbs
George Stubbs
George Stubbs was an English painter, best known for his paintings of horses.-Biography:Stubbs was born in Liverpool, the son of a currier and leather merchant. Information on his life up to age thirty-five is sparse, relying almost entirely on notes made by fellow artist Ozias Humphry towards the...
. Robertson was key in promoting the careers of many emerging British artists; Anthony Caro
Anthony Caro
Sir Anthony Alfred Caro, OM, CBE is an English abstract sculptor whose work is characterised by assemblages of metal using 'found' industrial objects.-Background and early life:...
, David Hockney
David Hockney
David Hockney, CH, RA, is an English painter, draughtsman, printmaker, stage designer and photographer, who is based in Bridlington, Yorkshire and Kensington, London....
, Bridget Riley
Bridget Riley
Bridget Louise Riley CH CBE is an English painter who is one of the foremost proponents of Op art.-Early life:...
, William G. Tucker
William G. Tucker
William G. Tucker is a modernist British sculptor and modern art scholar. He was born to English parents in Cairo, Egypt in 1935. In 1937, his family returned to England, where Tucker was raised. He attended the University of Oxford from 1955-1958...
, and Phillip King. Robertson placed public education at the heart of the Whitechapel programme giving space to exhibitions of work from schools.
Robertson's period at the Whitechapel transformed the profile of the Gallery at a time when it did not have regular funding from the Arts Council of Great Britain
Arts Council of Great Britain
The Arts Council of Great Britain was a non-departmental public body dedicated to the promotion of the fine arts in Great Britain. The Arts Council of Great Britain was divided in 1994 to form the Arts Council of England , the Scottish Arts Council, and the Arts Council of Wales...
, and he was regarded as a frontrunner to take over at the Tate Gallery in 1964 following the retirement of John Rothenstein
John Rothenstein
Sir John Knewstub Maurice Rothenstein CBE was an English art historian. He grew up in London the son of Sir William Rothenstein. The family was loosely connected to the Bloomsbury Set. John Rothenstein studied at Oxford University and became friends with T. E. Lawrence...
but due to politics lost out to Norman Reid
Norman Reid (museum director)
Sir Norman Robert Reid was an arts administrator and painter and was the Director of the Tate Gallery from 1964 to 1979-Early life:Norman Reid was born in Dulwich, London, and was the son of a shoemaker...
. He became director of the museum of the State University of New York
State University of New York
The State University of New York, abbreviated SUNY , is a system of public institutions of higher education in New York, United States. It is the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States, with a total enrollment of 465,000 students, plus...
for five years and wrote articles and monographs.
Robertson sat on the Arts Council art committee between 1958 and 1961 and again from 1980 to 1984. As a freelance curator in the 1980s, he mounted the magnificent Raoul Dufy
Raoul Dufy
Raoul Dufy[p] was a French Fauvist painter. He developed a colorful, decorative style that became fashionable for designs of ceramics and textiles, as well as decorative schemes for public buildings. He is noted for scenes of open-air social events...
show at the Hayward Gallery
Hayward Gallery
The Hayward Gallery is an art gallery within the Southbank Centre, part of an area of major arts venues on the South Bank of the River Thames, in central London, England. It is sited adjacent to the other Southbank Centre buildings and also the Royal National Theatre and British Film Institute...
(1983), as well as an important retrospective of Ceri Richards
Ceri Richards
-Biography:Richards was born in the village of Dunvant, near Swansea, the son of Thomas Coslett Richards and Sarah Richards . He and his younger brother and sister, Owen and Esther, were brought up in a highly cultured, working-class environment...
at the Tate.