Errol Lloyd (born 1943)"Errol Lloyd. Born 1943 in Jamaica"
Diaspora Artists. is a

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

n-born artist, writer, art critic, editor and arts administrator. Since the 1960s he has been based in London, to which he originally travelled to study law. Now well known as a book illustrator, he was runner-up for the Kate Greenaway Medal in 1973 for his work on ''My Brother Sean'' by Petronella Breinburg. Having become involved with the

Caribbean Artists Movement The Caribbean Artists Movement (CAM) was an influential cultural initiative, begun in London, England, in 1966 and active until about 1972,New Beacon Books New Beacon Books is a British publishing house, bookshop, and international book service that specializes in Black British, Caribbean, African, African-American and Asian literature. Founded in 1966 by John La Rose and Sarah White, it was the ...

Bogle-L'Ouverture Publications Bogle-L'Ouverture Publications (BLP) is a radical London-based publishing company founded by Guyanese activists Jessica Huntley (23 February 1927 – 13 October 2013)Margaret Busby"Jessica Huntley obituary" ''The Guardian'', 27 October 2013. and ...

,"The Sharp Edge of Hope: John LaRose and Children"
theracetoread , Children's Literature and Issues of Race. and

Allison and Busby Allison & Busby (A & B) is a publishing house based in London established by Clive Allison and Margaret Busby in 1967. The company has built up a reputation as a leading independent publisher. Background Launching as a publishing company in May ...

.Margaret Andrews, ''Doing Nothing is Not An Option: The Radical Lives of Eric & Jessica Huntley'', Middlesex, England: Krik Krak, 2014, p. 161. . Lloyd also had a long association with the Minorities' Arts Advisory Service (MAAS), whose magazine, ''Artrage'', he edited for a while. He is recognised for having done much pioneering work for black art, beginning in the 1960s, when he was one of the few artists "who consciously chose to create Black images".

Eddie Chambers Edward Chambers (born March 29, 1982) is an American former professional boxer. He challenged once for a unified world heavyweight title in 2010. He was ranked as the fourth best heavyweight in the world by '' The Ring'' at the conclusion of 20 ...

has written of him: "Gifted with an ability to capture likenesses in a range of creative and engaging ways, Lloyd has been responsible for a number of portrait commissions of leading Black and Caribbean males who have excelled in their respective fields over the course of the twentieth century", among them

C. L. R. James Cyril Lionel Robert James (4 January 1901 – 31 May 1989),Fraser, C. Gerald, '' The New York Times'', 2 June 1989. who sometimes wrote under the pen-name J. R. Johnson, was a Trinidadian historian, journalist and Marxist. His works are i ...

, Sir

Alexander Bustamante Sir William Alexander Clarke Bustamante (born William Alexander Clarke; 24 February 1884 – 6 August 1977) was a Jamaican politician and labour leader, who, in 1962, became the first prime minister of Jamaica. Early life and education He was ...

, Sir

Garfield Sobers Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, (born 28 July 1936), also known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974. A highly skilled bowler, an aggressive batsman and an excellent fielder, ...

and Lord Pitt.Eddie Chambers
''Black Artists in British Art: A History from 1950 to the Present''
I.B. Tauris, 2014, p. 72.

Life and career

Born in

Lucea, Jamaica Lucea is a coastal town in Jamaica and the capital of the parish of Hanover. History Hanover, Jamaica's second smallest parish was founded on 12 November 1723 with Lucea as the capital and main city. From the middle of the 18th century, ...

,"King's Cross"
KXV-2006-206-01: Errol Lloyd interview. Soundcloud. Errol Lloyd was schooled at

Munro College Munro College is a boarding school for boys in St Elizabeth, Jamaica. It was founded in 1856 as the Potsdam School (named for the city of Potsdam), a school for boys in St. Elizabeth as stipulated in the will of plantation owners Robert Hugh Mun ...

Saint Elizabeth Parish Saint Elizabeth, one of Jamaica's largest parishes, is located in the southwest of the island, in the county of Cornwall. Its capital, Black River, is located at the mouth of the Black River, the widest on the island. History Saint Elizabe ...

, where he excelled at sports and was an outstanding footballer (described in his schooldays in the early 1960s as being like "a Rolls Royce in a used car lot"). He travelled to Britain in 1963, aged 20, to study at the

Council of Legal Education The Council of Legal Education (CLE) was an English supervisory body established by the four Inns of Court to regulate and improve the legal education of barristers within England and Wales. History The Council was established in 1852 by the Inns ...

with the intention of becoming a lawyer, but that ambition was superseded by his interest in art (he did not complete his legal studies until 1974), although he undertook no formal training in that field. He has said: "I was self-taught and worked in isolation until I was introduced to he

Caribbean Artists Movement The Caribbean Artists Movement (CAM) was an influential cultural initiative, begun in London, England, in 1966 and active until about 1972,Ron Moody Ron Moody (born Ronald Moodnick; 8 January 1924 – 11 June 2015) was an English actor, composer, singer and writer. He was best known for his portrayal of Fagin in ''Oliver!'' (1968) and its 1983 Broadway revival. Moody earned a Golden Globe ...

and they acted like role models for me. From there my work developed." In 1967, Lloyd sculpted a bust of

and, having joined the Caribbean Artists Movement (CAM), took part in CAM's art exhibition at the

University of Kent , motto_lang = , mottoeng = Literal translation: 'Whom to serve is to reign'(Book of Common Prayer translation: 'whose service is perfect freedom')Graham Martin, ''From Vision to Reality: the Making of the University of Kent at Canterbury'' ...

. While still a student, Lloyd began to receive commissions to make bronze busts; his subjects have included the Jamaican prime minister Sir

, politician Lord Pitt, cricketer Sir

, and cultural figures including

John La Rose John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

Linton Kwesi Johnson Linton Kwesi Johnson (born 24 August 1952), also known as LKJ, is a Jamaica-born, British-based dub poet and activist. In 2002 he became the second living poet, and the only black one, to be published in the Penguin Modern Classics series. His p ...

and others."Framing Black Visual Arts Event"
(Eddie Chambers and Errol Lloyd in conversation with Sonia Dyer), ''No Colour Bar'' website, 4 August 2015. Lloyd regularly provided artwork for books published by Bogle-L'Ouverture and

New Beacon Books New Beacon Books is a British publishing house, bookshop, and international book service that specializes in Black British, Caribbean, African, African-American and Asian literature. Founded in 1966 by John La Rose and Sarah White, it was the ...

, as well as having his paintings featured on greetings cards. In 1969, he was responsible for the cover of Bogle-L'Ouverture's first title,

Walter Rodney Walter Anthony Rodney (23 March 1942 – 13 June 1980) was a Guyanese historian, political activist and academic. His notable works include '' How Europe Underdeveloped Africa'', first published in 1972. Rodney was assassinated in Georgeto ...

's ''The Groundings with my Brothers'', as well as their next title and others over the years. In 1971 he designed the cover for

Bernard Coard Winston Bernard Coard (born 10 August 1945) is a Grenadian politician who was Deputy Prime Minister in the People's Revolutionary Government of the New Jewel Movement. Coard launched a coup within the revolutionary government and took power f ...

's '' How the West Indian Child is Made Educationally Sub-Normal in the British School System'', published by New Beacon. In addition Lloyd worked for mainstream publishers such as

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

. His success as an illustrator began with the children's book ''My Brother Sean'' by Petronella Breinburg (

Bodley Head The Bodley Head is an English publishing house, founded in 1887 and existing as an independent entity until the 1970s. The name was used as an imprint of Random House Children's Books from 1987 to 2008. In April 2008, it was revived as an adul ...

, 1973), for which he was Highly Commended for the Kate Greenaway Medal; ''My Brother Sean'' was the first picture book by a mainstream UK publisher to feature black children aimed at the UK market. Other accolades followed during his career, including when his 1995 novel for teenagers, ''Many Rivers to Cross'', won the Youth Library Group award and was nominated for a Carnegie Medal."Errol Lloyd (1943–), Artist and playwright"
National Portrait Gallery. Alongside creating his own work, Lloyd has demonstrated a consistent concern for the general advancement of Black visual arts in Britain, promoting, supporting and celebrating other artists including such notables as Ronald Moody and Aubrey Williams. Lloyd was artist-in-residence at the

Keskidee Centre The Keskidee Centre, or Keskidee Arts Centre, was Britain's first arts centre for the black community, founded in 1971.Chambers (2014)
''Black Artists in British Art''
p. 71. He was a member of an initiative set up in 1978 called the Rainbow Art Group, which mounted several exhibitions. He was formerly a teacher for Advanced Painting at the

Camden Arts Centre Camden Art Centre (formerly known as Hampstead Arts Centre until 1967 and Camden Arts Centre until 2020) is a contemporary art gallery in the London Borough of Camden, England that hosts temporary exhibitions and educational outreach projects. T ...

, and also served on the Visual Arts Panel for Arts Council England. He is also known as a musician, playwright and storyteller. He is the subject of a photograph in the National Portrait Gallery, London, by

Horace Ové Sir Horace Shango Ové (born 1936) is a Trinidad and Tobago-born British filmmaker, photographer, painter and writer. One of the leading black independent filmmakers to emerge in Britain in the post-war period, Ové holds the ''Guinness World R ...

. Lloyd also features in Ové's film about John La Rose, ''Dream to Change the World''. In 2012, Lloyd gave the keynote address on "Arts and Activism, Culture and Resistance" at the Annual Huntley Conference at

London Metropolitan Archives The London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) is the principal local government archive repository for the Greater London area, including the City of London: it is the largest county record office in the United Kingdom. It was established under its pr ...

. In 2016, Lloyd was inducted into the Munro College Old Boys Association Hall of Fame.

Exhibitions

Errol Lloyd has over the years participated in many significant exhibitions in the UK. In 1997, he featured in ''Transforming the Crown: African, Asian and Caribbean Artists in Britain, 1966–1996'' — a historical exhibition in three New York City venues: the Studio Museum in Harlem, the

Bronx Museum of the Arts The Bronx Museum of the Arts (BxMA), also called the Bronx Museum of Art or simply the Bronx Museum, is an American cultural institution located in Concourse, Bronx, New York. The museum focuses on contemporary and 20th-century works created by ...

and the Caribbean Cultural Center – representing the Caribbean Artists Movement along with

Winston Branch Winston Branch (born in 1947) is a British artist originally from Saint Lucia, the sovereign island in the Caribbean Sea. He still has a home there, while maintaining a studio in California. Works by Branch are included in the collections of T ...

, Althea McNish, Aubrey Williams and

Ronald Moody Ronald Moody (12 August 1900 – 6 February 1984) was a Jamaican-born sculptor, specialising in wood carvings. His work features in collections including the National Portrait Gallery and Tate Britain in London, as well as the National Gallery ...

. More recently, his work was shown in the major exhibition '' No Colour Bar: Black British Art in Action 1960–1990'', at the

Guildhall Art Gallery The Guildhall Art Gallery houses the art collection of the City of London, England. The museum is located in the Moorgate area of the City of London. It is a stone building in a semi-Gothic style intended to be sympathetic to the historic Guil ...

(10 July 2015 – 24 January 2016), as part of which he was in conversation with Eddie Chambers on 13 July 2015, discussing "the impact made by notable Black Artists in the late 20th Century, who have gone largely unnoticed in the British Art Arena". Celebrating Lloyd's career and his contributions to the visual and literary culture in Black Britain, Rianna Jade Parker curated the retrospective ''Errol Lloyd. A Life In Colour'', which opened in November 2022 at 198 Contemporary Arts and Learning.

Selected exhibitions

* ''Caribbean Artists in England''.

Commonwealth Institute The Commonwealth Education Trust is a registered charity established in 2007 as the successor trust to the Commonwealth Institute. The trust focuses on primary and secondary education and the training of teachers and invests on educational pro ...

, London, 22 January–14 February 1971. * ''Afro-Caribbean Art''. Artists Market, London, 27 April–25 May 1978. Group exhibition organised by Drum Arts Centre. * ''Errol Lloyd'' (solo exhibition of paintings), Kingston (Jamaica). Jamaican High Commission. 19 May–19 June 1978. * ''Creation for Liberation: 2nd Open Exhibition By Black Artists''. Brixton Art Gallery, London, 17 July–8 August 1984. * ''Creation for Liberation. Third Annual Creation for Liberation Open Exhibition: Art by Black Artists''. GLC Brixton Recreation Centre, London, 1985. * ''Caribbean Expressions in Britain''. Leicestershire Museum and Art Gallery, Leicester, UK. 16 August–28 September 1986. * ''Black Art: Plotting the Course''. Touring exhibition, 1988. * ''Caribbean Connection''. Islington Arts Factory, London, 15 September–13 October 1995. * ''Caribbean Connection 2: Island Pulse''. Islington Arts Factory, London, 1996. * ''Transforming the Crown: African, Asian & Caribbean Artists in Britain, 1966–1996''. Caribbean Cultural Center, Studio Museum in Harlem, and

, New York City, 1997. * ''No Colour Bar: Black British Art in Action 1960–1990''.

, City of London, 10 July 2015 – 24 January 2016. * ''Errol Lloyd. A Life In Colour''. 198 Contemporary Arts and Learning, London, 26 November 2022 – 4 February 2023.

References

External links

"Errol Lloyd. Born 1943 in Jamaica"
Diaspora Artists.
"King's Cross"
Errol Lloyd audio interview. Soundcloud.
"Errol Lloyd (1943-), Artist and playwright"
photograph by

at the National Portrait Gallery. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lloyd, Errol 1943 births Living people Jamaican artists Black British artists Jamaican emigrants to the United Kingdom Black British writers Jamaican children's book illustrators Artists from London Black British musicians British arts administrators Jamaican sculptors Caribbean Artists Movement people 20th-century British male artists 20th-century British artists 21st-century male artists

Life and career

Exhibitions

Selected exhibitions

References

Further reading

External links