Geoffrey Clarke (28 November 1924 – 30 October 2014) was a British sculptor of ecclesiastical art and maker of stained glass.

Life and work

Clarke was a student of Ronald Grimshaw and attended the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It o ...

in 1948 after serving in the RAF. He received the silver medal at the

Milan Triennale The ''Milan Triennial'' (Triennale di Milano) is an art and design exhibition that takes place every three years at the Triennale di Milano Museum in Milan, Italy. History The exhibition was originally established in 1923 as a biennial architect ...

for a collaboration with the furniture designer,

Robin Day Sir Robin Day (24 October 1923 – 6 August 2000) was an English political journalist and television and radio broadcaster. Day's obituary in ''The Guardian'' by Dick Taverne stated that he was "the most outstanding television journalist of ...

. He was part of a group of artists including

Lynn Chadwick Lynn Russell Chadwick, (24 November 1914 – 25 April 2003) was an English sculptor and artist. Much of his work is semi-abstract sculpture in bronze or steel. His work is in the collections of MoMA in New York, the Tate in London and the ...

Reg Butler Reginald Cotterell Butler (28 April 1913 – 23 October 1981) was an English sculptor. He was born at Bridgefoot House, Buntingford, Hertfordshire to Frederick William Butler (1880–1937) and Edith (1880–1969), daughter of blacksm ...

and

Kenneth Armitage William Kenneth Armitage (18 July 1916 – 22 January 2002) was a British sculptor known for his semi-abstract bronzes. Life Armitage was born in Leeds on July 18, 1916, the youngest of three children studied at the Leeds College of Art and t ...

who in 1952 was exhibited in the British Pavilion at the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...

. They were described by art critic Herbert Read as "the geometry of fear sculptors". He was commissioned to create the cross of nails for Coventry Cathedral and also worked on three of the nave windows between 1957 and 1962. In 1965 he had a retrospective at The Redfern Gallery, London and his work is also held at the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

. Clarke was made a

Royal Academician The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

in 1975. He was the subject of the Shell Film Unit film ''Cast in a New Mould''.

Illustrations of works

File:MovementEquivalent.JPG, ''Movement Equivalent'' On display on the Bedford campus of the University of Bedfordshire. File:Coventry Cathedral Cuthbert Bardsley Memorial (2377707511).jpg, '' Cuthbert Bardsley Cross'' at Coventry Cathedral, 1962. File:Interior of Coventry Cathedral - geograph.org.uk - 2127944.jpg, Stained-glass windows at Coventry Cathedral. File:Orion House, St Martin's Lane, London (3422938969).jpg, ''Orion House (formerly Thorn House)'', St Martin's Lane, London. 1960. File:Geoffrey Clarke Window, Lincoln Cathedral (16217008949).jpg, Lincoln Cathedral stained-glass window File:A snake in The Orchard, Jesus College, Cambridge - geograph.org.uk - 1041959.jpg, ''A Snake In The Orchard'',

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...

File:King's Lynn Minster, Stained glass window (33160216441).jpg, Stained-glass window at

King's Lynn Minster St Margaret's Church, King's Lynn, entitled King's Lynn Minster since 2011, is a Grade I listed parish church in the Church of England in King's Lynn. The building dates from the 12th to 15th centuries, with major restoration of the nave in the ...

, Norfolk.

References

External links

Geoffrey Clarke at the Tate
1924 births 2014 deaths Alumni of the Royal College of Art English sculptors English male sculptors Modern sculptors Geometry of Fear Royal Academicians {{UK-sculptor-stub