Raymond Hawkey
Encyclopedia
Raymond John "Ray" Hawkey (2 February 1930 – 22 August 2010) was an English
graphic designer
and author, based in London
.
to John Charles Hawkey (RAF WW1) and Constance Olive (née Steckhahn) Hawkey.
and was awarded a scholarship in 1950 to study at the Royal College of Art
where he became a notable art director of the RCA's ARK magazine (now known as ARC), where he allegedly "outraged the rector Robin Darwin
by introducing illustration and photography to ARK's covers".
He was one of the founders of the Association of Graphic Designers in 1959
and won a design talent competition organised by Vogue
magazine. He was recruited by Vogue's publishers Condé Nast
where he worked for "three happy years."
In 1959 he became design director of the Daily Express
where he and Michael Rand revitalised the use of illustration as a key adjunct to stories. Design Journal said "their countdown description of a passenger plane ditching in mid-Atlantic is still [1970] fresh and moving; since there were, understandably, no cameramen at the scene of the crash, none of the other newspapers illustrated what it was like for the passengers" and that "[they] ... set a style which is still [1974] recognisable as the root of the best current work".
Hawkey was appointed presentation director of The Observer
in 1964 and led the design of its colour magazine. In July 1986 he was co-designer (with Tony Mullins) of the first dummy of The Independent
, but it is not clear how much of his contribution survived the painful cycles of redesign before the launch
During his time at the Royal College of Art Hawkey first encountered Len Deighton
when Deighton (another RCA scholarship student at that time) gatecrashed a literary party that Hawkey was helping to organise. Instead of ejecting the intruder, Hawkey found much in common with him and they became "lifelong friends" (Dempsey, ibid).
In 1962, Hawkey was Deighton's choice to design the cover of his first novel The IPCRESS File, which some regard as the template for the covers of all subsequent airport novel
s. He went on to design covers for Deighton's books, including Horse Under Water
, Funeral in Berlin
and The Action Cookbook (where the IPCRESS revolver reappears, this time with a sprig of parsley in the barrel).
Hawkey designed covers for works by many other authors, including the Pan paperback editions of James Bond
published in the mid-to-late 1960s, which the Financial Times
described as having "a stark elegance... consistently menacing and memorable. Each has a single photographic image on a plain or textured background. Blurb is dispensed with. It's the visual equivalent of a cruel, sardonic smile."
Hawkey's photo-realistic cover style is seen in his title sequence for the 1969 film Oh! What a Lovely War
. for which Len Deighton was screenwriter and an (uncredited) producer
Hawkey also wrote and co-designed a 3D animated pop-up book Evolution: The Story of the Origins of Humankind, published by Putnam in 1987.
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...
graphic designer
Graphic designer
A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, printed or electronic media, such as brochures and...
and author, based in 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...
.
Personal life
He was born in 1930 in PlymouthPlymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
to John Charles Hawkey (RAF WW1) and Constance Olive (née Steckhahn) Hawkey.
Professional Education
Hawkey achieved a National Diploma in Design at the (then) Plymouth School of ArtPlymouth College of Art and Design
Plymouth College of Art - formerly called Plymouth College of Art and Design - is a specialist arts college located in Plymouth, England. It was founded as the Plymouth Drawing School in 1856,, and remains one of a few specialist art colleges in the United Kingdom. The college provides vocational...
and was awarded a scholarship in 1950 to study at the Royal College of Art
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art is an art school located in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s only wholly postgraduate university of art and design, offering the degrees of Master of Arts , Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy...
where he became a notable art director of the RCA's ARK magazine (now known as ARC), where he allegedly "outraged the rector Robin Darwin
Robin Darwin
Sir Robert Vere "Robin" Darwin KCB CBE was a British artist and Rector of the Royal College of Art.He was the son of the golf writer Bernard Darwin and his wife the engraver Elinor Monsell. His sister is the potter Ursula Mommens. He was a great-grandson of the naturalist Charles Darwin...
by introducing illustration and photography to ARK's covers".
He was one of the founders of the Association of Graphic Designers in 1959
Newspaper design
While an RCA student Hawkey helped the picture editor of the Sunday GraphicSunday Graphic
The Sunday Graphic was an English tabloid newspaper published in Fleet Street.The newspaper was founded in 1915 as the Sunday Herald and was later renamed the Illustrated Sunday Herald. In 1927 it changed its name to the Sunday Graphic, becoming the sister paper of the Daily Graphic. In 1931 it...
and won a design talent competition organised by Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
magazine. He was recruited by Vogue's publishers Condé Nast
Condé Nast Publications
Condé Nast, a division of Advance Publications, is a magazine publisher. In the U.S., it produces 18 consumer magazines, including Architectural Digest, Bon Appétit, GQ, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Vogue, as well as four business-to-business publications, 27 websites, and more than 50 apps...
where he worked for "three happy years."
In 1959 he became design director of the Daily Express
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
where he and Michael Rand revitalised the use of illustration as a key adjunct to stories. Design Journal said "their countdown description of a passenger plane ditching in mid-Atlantic is still [1970] fresh and moving; since there were, understandably, no cameramen at the scene of the crash, none of the other newspapers illustrated what it was like for the passengers" and that "[they] ... set a style which is still [1974] recognisable as the root of the best current work".
Hawkey was appointed presentation director of The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
in 1964 and led the design of its colour magazine. In July 1986 he was co-designer (with Tony Mullins) of the first dummy of The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, but it is not clear how much of his contribution survived the painful cycles of redesign before the launch
Other graphic design
Len Deighton
Leonard Cyril Deighton is a British military historian, cookery writer, and novelist. He is perhaps most famous for his spy novel The IPCRESS File, which was made into a film starring Michael Caine....
when Deighton (another RCA scholarship student at that time) gatecrashed a literary party that Hawkey was helping to organise. Instead of ejecting the intruder, Hawkey found much in common with him and they became "lifelong friends" (Dempsey, ibid).
In 1962, Hawkey was Deighton's choice to design the cover of his first novel The IPCRESS File, which some regard as the template for the covers of all subsequent airport novel
Airport novel
Airport novels represent a literary genre that is not so much defined by its plot or cast of stock characters, as much as it is by the social function it serves...
s. He went on to design covers for Deighton's books, including Horse Under Water
Horse Under Water
Horse Under Water is the second of Len Deighton's spy novels featuring an anonymous British agent protagonist . It was followed by Funeral in Berlin.- Background :...
, Funeral in Berlin
Funeral in Berlin
Funeral in Berlin is a spy novel by Len Deighton.- Plot :The protagonist, who is unnamed, travels to Berlin to arrange the defection of a Soviet scientist named Semitsa, this being brokered by Johnny Vulkan of the Berlin intelligence community...
and The Action Cookbook (where the IPCRESS revolver reappears, this time with a sprig of parsley in the barrel).
Hawkey designed covers for works by many other authors, including the Pan paperback editions of James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
published in the mid-to-late 1960s, which the Financial Times
Financial Times
The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
described as having "a stark elegance... consistently menacing and memorable. Each has a single photographic image on a plain or textured background. Blurb is dispensed with. It's the visual equivalent of a cruel, sardonic smile."
Hawkey's photo-realistic cover style is seen in his title sequence for the 1969 film Oh! What a Lovely War
Oh! What a Lovely War
Oh! What a Lovely War is a musical film based on the stage musical Oh, What a Lovely War! originated by Charles Chilton as a radio play, The Long Long Trail in December 1961, and transferred to stage by Gerry Raffles in partnership with Joan Littlewood and her Theatre Workshop created in 1963,...
. for which Len Deighton was screenwriter and an (uncredited) producer
Books by Raymond Hawkey
Hawkey wrote four thrillers:- Wild Card (with Roger Bingham) (1974)
- Side-Effect (1979)
- it (1983)
- End Stage (1988)
Hawkey also wrote and co-designed a 3D animated pop-up book Evolution: The Story of the Origins of Humankind, published by Putnam in 1987.
Further reading
- Mike Dempsey's 2001 article is the source for some biographical material not otherwise credited in this article.
- Thumbnail images from the title sequence of Oh! What a lovely war are reproduced on page 101 of Poyner & Crowley's book and can be viewed using the Read Inside feature for this book on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com (accessed 2007-12-08).