Michael Ayrton
Encyclopedia
Michael Ayrton was an English
artist and writer, known as a painter, printmaker and sculptor, and also as a critic, broadcaster and novelist. He was a stage and costume designer, working with John Minton
on the 1942 John Gielgud
production of Macbeth
from age 19; and a book designer and illustrator, for Wyndham Lewis
's The Human Age trilogy and William Golding
. He also collaborated with Constant Lambert
. His work is in several important collections including the Tate Gallery
, London, National Portrait Gallery, London, Museum of Modern Art
, New York, Fry Art Gallery
, Essex.
and Daedalus
, the legendary inventor and maze builder, including bronze sculpture and the pseudo-autobiographical novel "The Maze Maker" (Holt, Rinehart and Winston
, 1967). He also wrote and illustrated "Tittivulus Or The Verbiage Collector", an account of the efforts of a minor devil to collect idle words. He was the author of several non-fiction works on fine art
, including "Aspects of British Art" (Collins, 1947) .
Ayrton was born Michael A. Gould in St Pancras, London
, his parents being Gerald Gould
and Barbara Ayrton; he took his mother's maiden name professionally. In 1952, he married Elisabeth Evelyn Walshe (1910-1991), the former wife of author Nigel Balchin
. Elisabeth Ayrton was a novelist and writer on cookery. He died in 1975 at Hampstead
, London
shortly after an entertaining meeting with two young artists from Chingford .
In 1977 Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery organised a major retrospective exhibition of his work which subsequently went on tour.
Several paintings are currently on display in the Old Bank Hotel
in Oxford
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
artist and writer, known as a painter, printmaker and sculptor, and also as a critic, broadcaster and novelist. He was a stage and costume designer, working with John Minton
John Minton (artist)
Francis John Minton was an English painter, illustrator, stage designer and teacher. After studying in France, he became a teacher in London, and at the same time maintained a consistently large output of works...
on the 1942 John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
production of Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
from age 19; and a book designer and illustrator, for Wyndham Lewis
Wyndham Lewis
Percy Wyndham Lewis was an English painter and author . He was a co-founder of the Vorticist movement in art, and edited the literary magazine of the Vorticists, BLAST...
's The Human Age trilogy and William Golding
William Golding
Sir William Gerald Golding was a British novelist, poet, playwright and Nobel Prize for Literature laureate, best known for his novel Lord of the Flies...
. He also collaborated with Constant Lambert
Constant Lambert
Leonard Constant Lambert was a British composer and conductor.-Early life:Lambert, the son of Russian-born Australian painter George Lambert, was educated at Christ's Hospital and the Royal College of Music...
. His work is in several important collections including 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...
, London, National Portrait Gallery, London, Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
, New York, Fry Art Gallery
Fry Art Gallery
The Fry Art Gallery is an art gallery located in Saffron Walden, Essex, England. In its present form the gallery was established in 1985 and it is managed by the Fry Art Gallery Society...
, Essex.
Life and career
Beginning in 1961, Michael Ayrton wrote and created many works associated with the myths of the MinotaurMinotaur
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur , as the Greeks imagined him, was a creature with the head of a bull on the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, "part man and part bull"...
and Daedalus
Daedalus
In Greek mythology, Daedalus was a skillful craftsman and artisan.-Family:...
, the legendary inventor and maze builder, including bronze sculpture and the pseudo-autobiographical novel "The Maze Maker" (Holt, Rinehart and Winston
Holt, Rinehart and Winston
Holt McDougal is an American publishing company, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, that specializes in textbooks for use in secondary schools. Holt, Rinehart and Winston was a division of Harcourt Education...
, 1967). He also wrote and illustrated "Tittivulus Or The Verbiage Collector", an account of the efforts of a minor devil to collect idle words. He was the author of several non-fiction works on fine art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
, including "Aspects of British Art" (Collins, 1947) .
Ayrton was born Michael A. Gould in St Pancras, London
St Pancras, London
St Pancras is an area of London. For many centuries the name has been used for various officially-designated areas, but now is used informally and rarely having been largely superseded by several other names for overlapping districts.-Ancient parish:...
, his parents being Gerald Gould
Gerald Gould
Gerald Gould was an English writer, known as a journalist and reviewer, essayist and poet.-Life:He was brought up in Norwich, and studied at University College, London and Magdalen College, Oxford...
and Barbara Ayrton; he took his mother's maiden name professionally. In 1952, he married Elisabeth Evelyn Walshe (1910-1991), the former wife of author Nigel Balchin
Nigel Balchin
Nigel Balchin was an English novelist and screenwriter particularly known for his novels written during and immediately after World War II: Darkness Falls From the Air, The Small Back Room and Mine Own Executioner.-Life:He was born Nigel Marlin Balchin in Potterne, Wiltshire to...
. Elisabeth Ayrton was a novelist and writer on cookery. He died in 1975 at Hampstead
Hampstead
Hampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
shortly after an entertaining meeting with two young artists from Chingford .
In 1977 Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery organised a major retrospective exhibition of his work which subsequently went on tour.
Several paintings are currently on display in the Old Bank Hotel
The Old Bank Hotel, Oxford
The Old Bank Hotel is a hotel located in the historic university city of Oxford, England. It is located on the south side of Oxford's High Street, where it was the first hotel in one hundred and thirty five years to be created in the city's heart.-Facilities:...
in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
.
Selected writings
- 1946: British Drawing. London: Collins ASIN B00149X1DM
- 1947: Aspects of British Art. London: Collins
- 1953: Tittivulus or The verbiage collector. London: Max Reinhardt
- 1967: The Maze Maker: a novel. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston
External links
- Examples of Ayrton's art http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ArtistWorks?cgroupid=999999961&artistid=681&page=1
- Tate Gallery Collection Letter
- J C Leissring Collection Biographical notes
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography index entry