V&A British Design Season displays
A series of displays has been programmed to complement the British Design exhibition:
The Hornet (c) D.C. Thomson & Co., Ltd
On Eagles Wings: British Adventure Comics 1950–69
7 January–27 May 2012
Gallery 74
Free admission
The successful launch of the Eagle and its cover star, Frank Hampson’s Dan Dare, ushered in a boom period in British adventure comics. This display will showcase boys’ and girls’ titles from the 1950s and 60s, drawing predominantly on material from the Museum's collections.
Phoebe Stannard, Under Lock and Key II, 2011. Lent by the artist
The New Medallists
11 February–19 August 2012
Room 111
Free admission
Natasha Ratcliffe, Petra Mills, Sara Richards, Chloe Shaw, Phoebe Stannard and Heidi Hinder are the New Medallists. Their work breathes new life into the centuries-old art of the medal. Usually cast in metal, art medals are small sculptures, made for personal pleasure or contemplation. In this display, the New Medallists will tell us the thoughts behind the medals they created.
Read more about The New Medallists
Raymond Moore, Pembrokeshire, 1967. Museum no. PH.412-1981
Island Stories
16 March–19 September 2012
Room 38a
Free admission
Drawn exclusively from the V&A collections, this display is a selection of around 70 photographs celebrating the variety of photography in the UK since 1945. It captures the diversity of the island and its people, and focuses on narratives told through individual bodies of work produced during a dynamic time in British history.
Lady Gaga's Monster Ball tour (2009-10), set design by Es Devlin. Photograph by Es Devlin.
Transformation and Revelation: Gormley to Gaga
UK design for performance 2007–2011
17 March–30 September 2012
Room 104
Free admission
In association with the Society of British Theatre Designers
Exploring the theme of transformation, this display will reveal contemporary designs for performance by over 30 British Theatre Designers. It will provide an intriguing insight into the designers’ creative process and will include costumes, set models, photographs, drawings, sound productions and lighting designs. Designs include Sutra by Antony Gormley, War Horse by Rae Smith and Lady Gaga’s Monster Ball Tour by Es Devlin.
Sinew vase, designed and made by Kevin Grey, Britannia Silver
Fit for Purpose: Contemporary British Silversmiths
30 March – 16 September 2012
The Whiteley Galleries, room 66
Free admission
For this display Contemporary British Silversmiths have brought together the work of some of the best silversmiths practising in Britain today. It takes an imaginative look at the theme Fit for Purpose, exploring the function of each object both practically and conceptually. The work on show demonstrates that silver, with its unique working and practical properties, is as relevant today as it has ever been. Each piece featured bears the new 2012 UK hallmark, along with a special hallmark available for one year only in celebration of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, making these objects historically significant and collectable.
'Concept' teapot, jug, cup and saucer. Designed by Queensberry Hunt for Hornsea Pottery, 1977. Museum nos. C.207B,C,D,G & H-1977
Queensberry Hunt: Ceramic Design
14 April–2 September 2012
Ceramics Galleries, Room 146
Free admission
The ceramic design consultancy Queensberry Hunt has been responsible for some of the most familiar and best-selling tableware of recent years. Formed in 1966 by David Queensberry and Martin Hunt, the firm has worked with leading manufacturers and retailers around the globe, including Hornsea, Rosenthal, Habitat, John Lewis, and Crate & Barrel. This display showcases four decades of their design, including new projects.
Kenneth Rowntree, Grainfoot Farm, Derwentdale, Derbyshire, 1940. Museum no. E.1272-1949. Given by the Pilgrim Trust
Recording Britain
14 April–21 October 2012
Paintings, rooms 88a & The Julie and Robert Breckman Prints & Drawings Gallery, room 90
Free admission
The ‘Recording Britain’ collection of watercolours and drawings gives a fascinating account of the country in the early years of the Second World War when lives, landscapes and precious buildings were under threat , not only from bombs but also from the effects of ‘progress’ and development. Gill Saunders, curator of the ‘Recording Britain’ display and editor of a new book, will discuss the origins and aims of this unique documentary project.
Young Lolitas in Osaka, November 2011
Kitty and the Bulldog: Lolita fashion and the influence of Britain
23 April 2012–27 January 2013
The Toshiba Gallery, room 45
Free admission
Kitty and the Bulldog explores the way in which British fashion – notably Victoriana, Punk and Gothic – has influenced the development of Japan’s ‘Lolita’ style, a cult fashion movement whose defining feature has been its preoccupation with cuteness, or ‘kawaii’. The display features nine outfits recently bought in Tokyo for the V&A's permanent collections.
Princes Street in the fog, reproduced in 'The Silent Traveller in Edinburgh', 1948
The Silent Traveller: Chiang Yee in Britain, 1933–1955
23 April–9 November 2012
T.T.Tsui gallery of Chinese Art, room 44
Free Admission
Chinese artist and writer Chiang Yee (1903-1977) came to Britain in 1933 where he lived and worked until 1955. During this time he wrote, among other things a successful series of illustrated travelogues using the pen name ‘Ya xing zhe’ or ‘The Silent Traveller’. This display explores Chiang’s creative endeavours through a selection of original illustrations and sketches from the Silent Traveller series and other books as well as designs and archival material which describe his life and work in Britain.
Generously supported by the Friends of the V&A
The Moon of Gomrath by Alan Garner, cover illustration by George W. Adamson, 1965. Published by Penguin Books in association with Collins. Museum no. NAL 38041802088054. Donated by Anne Renier and F.G. Renier.
George W Adamson: A Twentieth-Century Illustrator
3 April – 30 September 2012
Library Landing, room 85
Free admission
George W. Adamson (1913 –2005) was a prolific printmaker, illustrator and cartoonist. During a career that lasted more than 60 years he was an official war artist, a regular contributor to Punch, and the illustrator for over 100 books. This display makes a selection from Adamson’s wide ranging work as an illustrator, with books and magazines from the National Art Library’s holdings shown alongside original artwork on loan from The George W. Adamson Archive.
The Western Concourse nearing completion, King’s Cross station Hufton + Crow
King's Cross: Regenerating a London Landmark
19 May–21 October 2012
Architecture, Rooms 127 & 128a
Free admission
This display features original drawings, photographs, models, and film footage documenting the work by the lead architects and masterplanners John McAslan + Partners and engineer ARUP to transform London’s King’s Cross Station for Network Rail. Timed for completion to coincide with the 2012 London Olympics, the regeneration plans will triple the station’s size and re-orientate its entrance to enhance transportation links with St Pancras.
Joseph Mallord William Turner, Inside Tintern Abbey, Monmouthshire, about 1794. Museum no. 1683-1871
So Peculiarly English: topographical watercolours
7 June 2012 – March 2013
Leighton, room 102
Free admission
Since the early nineteenth century, the term ‘topography’ has been used in Britain to define the description, mapping or representation of the features of a given area. This genre is associated with the medium of watercolour.
This display charts the development of topography, from the scientific observation of Penn and architectural views of Malton, to picturesque landscapes by Turner and Constable, ending with the changes in representation in the early twentieth century, exemplified by Clausen.
Giles Deacon, SS12. Courtesy of the British Fashion Council
Britain Creates 2012: Fashion + Art Collusion
6 July – 29 July 2012
Room 17a
Free admission
Britain Creates 2012: Fashion + Art Collusion, led by the British Fashion Council/Bazaar Fashion Arts Foundation and in partnership with the Mayor of London, brings together the UK’s most prestigious fashion designers to collaborate with Britain’s leading visual artists on specially commissioned works of art as part of the London 2012 Festival. Pairings include Giles Deacon & Jeremy Deller; Hussein Chalayan & Gavin Turk and Matthew Williamson & Mat Collishaw.
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