Trevor J. Denning (6 December 1923 – 23 October 2009) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

artist, sculptor, writer, and art teacher who was influential in the

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

art community.

Biography

Denning was born in

Moseley Moseley is a suburb of south Birmingham, England, south of the city centre. The area is a popular cosmopolitan residential location and leisure destination, with a number of bars and restaurants. The area also has a number of boutiques and ot ...

, Birmingham, studying painting and graphics at the

Birmingham School of Art The Birmingham School of Art was a municipal art school based in the centre of Birmingham, England. Although the organisation was absorbed by Birmingham Polytechnic in 1971 and is now part of Birmingham City University's Faculty of Arts, Design a ...

from 1938 to 1942 and teaching there (from 1971 the Faculty of Art of

Birmingham Polytechnic , mottoeng = "Do what you are doing; attend to your business" , established = 1992—gained university status1971—City of Birmingham Polytechnic1843— Birmingham College of Art , type = Public , affiliation = ...

) between 1945 and 1985. In 1947, he was one of the founders of the Birmingham Artists Committee and in 1961 he organised the ''Four Letter Art'' exhibition at the

Royal Birmingham Society of Artists The Royal Birmingham Society of Artists or RBSA is an art society, based in the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham, England, where it owns and operates an art gallery, the RBSA Gallery, on Brook Street, just off St Paul's Square. It is both a re ...

, having been elected a member the year before. Although there was no organisational link, Denning's work exhibiting contemporary art in the city was acknowledged as an influence by the artists who founded the

Ikon Gallery The Ikon Gallery () is an English gallery of contemporary art, located in Brindleyplace, Birmingham. It is housed in the Grade II listed, neo-gothic former Oozells Street Board School, designed by John Henry Chamberlain in 1877. Ikon was set u ...

in 1964, and he held a solo exhibition at the gallery two years later. Denning was also a published expert on

Spanish playing cards Spanish-suited playing cards or Spanish-suited cards have four suits, and a deck is usually made up of 40 or 48 cards (or even 50 by including two jokers). It is categorized as a Latin-suited deck and has strong similarities with the Italian- ...

. He was made the first Member of Honour of the ''Asociación Española de Coleccionismo e Investigación del Naipe'' in 1989 and in 1993 won the Modiano Prize for research into the history of playing cards. He and his wife were active members of

Birmingham Humanists The Birmingham Humanist Group was formed on 23 May 1962 at the Arden Hotel, New Street, Birmingham, England, at a meeting convened by Dr Anthony Brierley. It changed its name to Birmingham Humanists (Brum Hums) in 2000 and voted to become a Partner ...

for over 30 years and participated in the scheme to ensure every MP received a copy of ''The God Delusion''."Pledge Bank London"
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References

1923 births 2009 deaths 20th-century English painters English male painters People from Moseley Members and Associates of the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists Alumni of the Birmingham School of Art Academics of the Birmingham School of Art 20th-century English male artists {{England-painter-stub