Tom Purvis (12 June 188827 August 1959) was a British painter and commercial poster artist. His work was part of the art competitions at the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated fro ...

and the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...

Early life

Purvis was born in Bristol, the son of sailor and marine artist T G Purvis. He studied at

Camberwell School of Art Camberwell College of Arts is a public tertiary art school in Camberwell, in London, England. It is one of the six constituent colleges of the University of the Arts London. It offers further and higher education programmes, including postgrad ...

and worked for six years at the advertising firm of Mather & Crowther before becoming a freelance designer. Purvis developed a bold, two-dimensional style using large blocks of vivid flat colour and eliminating detail. He fought in the First World War in the

Artists Rifles The 21 Special Air Service Regiment (Artists) (Reserve), historically known as The Artists Rifles is a regiment of the Army Reserve. Its name is abbreviated to 21 SAS(R). Raised in London in 1859 as a volunteer light infantry unit, the regime ...

London and North Eastern Railway

From 1923 to 1943 Purvis worked for the

London & North Eastern Railway The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was the second largest (after London, Midland and Scottish Railway, LMS) of the "Big Four (British railway companies), Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain. It op ...

(LNER) under the direction of Advertising Manager William Teasdale and then his successor Charles Dandridge, who both allowed him considerable freedom in his designs. During his time at the LNER Purvis produced over 100 posters, around 5-6 per year or one every two months. He enjoyed a very high status in the LNER's advertising department as he was one of the major designers involved in the recognisable bold and graphic LNER poster style. He was so important to the LNER that he was paid a retainer of approximately £450 per annum to carry out his work. His posters for the LNER largely avoided depictions of the trains themselves but rather concentrated on portraying the resorts that were the holiday destinations of travelers and the leisure pursuits that could be enjoyed there. Sex appeal was quite a strong element of Purvis's work, with many posters portraying women in bathing costumes with bare arms and legs—quite risqué in 1930's Britain! As well as individual posters, Purvis also produced two sets of six posters for the LNER that could either stand alone or be joined to produce a single, overall image. The '' ... by LNER'' series portrays six seaside resorts, each shown at an unusual angle, to form a continuous landscape in the background as the posters, like the trains themselves, travel up the east coast of Britain from

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

and finally

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

. The ''East Coast Joys'' set, depicting various leisure activities, has a relaxed, simplified style and the warm colours give it an almost

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

feel, emphasising that the east coast is 'the drier side of Britain'.

Other work

As well as his work for the LNER, Purvis also designed posters for the Gentlemans' outfitters Austin Reed and for the 1932

British Industries Fair The British Industries Fair was an exhibition centre in Birmingham, England. The large complex of buildings was built in 1920 and was situated between Castle Bromwich Aerodrome and the railway line. For two weeks every year it was the most visite ...

. In 1930 he joined the

Society of Industrial Artists The Chartered Society of Designers (CSD) is a professional body for designers. It is the only Royal Chartered body of experienced designers. Its membership is multi-disciplinary – representing designers in all design, disciplines including I ...

, a group which put pressure on industry to improve standards of training for graphic designers and provide a wider range of employment for them. In 1936 Purvis became one of the first

Royal Designers for Industry Royal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts (RSA) in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is awarded to people who have achieved "sustaine ...

. He created the "It's Up to You" poster of Britannia, standing by the

Union Jack The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

, during the Second World War, but gave up poster design after the war to paint portraits and religious pictures.

Publications

*"Introduction", ''Poster Progress''. The Studio Ltd, 1937.

References

External links