Geoffrey Clarke

About the artist

Geoffrey Clarke R.A. (1924-2014) was born and raised in Darnley Dale, Derbyshire. Son of an amateur etcher, Clarke took a liking to art practices and attended Preston and Manchester Art Schools before serving in the RAF during WW2. Following this, he enrolled at the Royal College of Art (RCA) in 1948.

During his time at the RCA he studied design for stained glass and created an award-winning window panel. His ability was recognised by RCA Principle Robin Darwin, and by 1952, Clarke was on his way to creating a decade-long series of commissions for Coventry Cathedral. The largest and most well-known of these works was his Flying Cross.

1952 was also a significant year for British artists at the Venice Biennale. Clarke was part of the British Pavillion at the exhibition. Art critic Herbert Read coined the term ‘Geometry of Fear’ to describe the work exhibited by this group of artists, which also included, among others, Kenneth Armitage, Reg Butler, Lynn Chadwick and Bernard Meadows.

Clarke worked by creating models in polystyrene that he would then cast in aluminium. He is said to have enjoyed the fact that the polystyrene would simply evaporate in the process. Clarke created many public art commissions using this process, taking him all over the world.

In addition to exhibiting widely, Clarke also taught during his career. He returned to the Royal College of Art from 1968-73 to be the head of the department for light transmission and projection.

Clarke was married to fellow sculptor Ethelwynne Tyrer, known as Bill. Their son Jonathan Clarke followed in their footsteps and is an active sculptor.

What’s in the collection?

The archive of Geoffrey Clarke is a large one, consisting of 32 boxes. It includes correspondence, exhibition catalogues, press cuttings, books, financial papers, photographs, sketchbooks, albums, sketches, film, negatives and artist’s statements.

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