Gunnis Dictionary of Sculpture in Britain
Encyclopedia
The original Gunnis Dictionary of British Sculpture 1660-1851 has been the standard reference work on British sculpture since it was first published in 1953 by Odhams Press
. It was researched by Rupert Forbes Gunnis (London 1899– Reading 1965), a civil servant in the British colonial Government of Cyprus
, and later curator of Tunbridge Wells
Museum. A revision was printed in 1968. The book is considered a major scholarly work.
Under the editorship of Ingrid Roscoe
, with assistance from her co-editors Emma Hardy and Greg Sullivan, work began in 2000 on revising the dictionary for the publication by Yale University Press
of a new edition. The new edition covers sculptors who were active in Britain at any time between 1660 and 1851, irrespective of their country of origin and even if they also worked outside these dates. All of the artists listed in the original Gunnis remain, but new ones have been added, reflecting later research on the subject. The format of the new book is closely based upon the original Gunnis, each entry consisting of a biographical text followed by a list of works.
Odhams Press
Odhams Press was a British publishing firm. Originally a newspaper group, founded in 1890, it took the name Odham's Press Ltd in 1920 when it merged with John Bull magazine. By 1937 it had founded the first colour weekly, Woman, for which it set up and operated a dedicated high-speed print works...
. It was researched by Rupert Forbes Gunnis (London 1899– Reading 1965), a civil servant in the British colonial Government of Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, and later curator of Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
Museum. A revision was printed in 1968. The book is considered a major scholarly work.
Under the editorship of Ingrid Roscoe
Ingrid Roscoe
Ingrid Mary Roscoe FSA is a writer on English art and Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire.Dr Ingrid Roscoe was born at Rugby School in 1944 to Dr Arthur Allen and Else, who had married after only meeting three times...
, with assistance from her co-editors Emma Hardy and Greg Sullivan, work began in 2000 on revising the dictionary for the publication by Yale University Press
Yale University Press
Yale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day. It became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but remains financially and operationally autonomous....
of a new edition. The new edition covers sculptors who were active in Britain at any time between 1660 and 1851, irrespective of their country of origin and even if they also worked outside these dates. All of the artists listed in the original Gunnis remain, but new ones have been added, reflecting later research on the subject. The format of the new book is closely based upon the original Gunnis, each entry consisting of a biographical text followed by a list of works.
External links
- Rupert Gunnis at the dictionary of art historians.org
- Page at the Henry Moore Institute: Research papers for Rupert Gunnis's "Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851"
- Page at the Henry Moore Institute: Research notes and admin papers of the Rupert Gunnis dictionary revision project
- Dictionary of British sculptors: 1660-1851 in Google book