British sculptor
Wendy Ann Taylor
CBE (born
Stamford, Lincolnshire , 1945) is an English artist and sculptor, specialising in permanent, site-specific commissions. According to her website, she 'was one of the first artists of her generation to “take art out of the galleries and onto the streets”'.
[1] Her work typically consists of large sculptures which are displayed to appear carefully balanced.
[2]
Early life and education
Wendy Taylor studied from 1963 to 1967 at the
Saint Martin's School of Art in
London . She gained renown for her many sculptures in the public realm, especially in London.[
citation needed ]
Career
Timepiece ,
St Katharine Docks by
Tower Bridge
Taylor's abstract sculptures explore themes of equilibrium, materiality and fabrication. She views her artworks as communicative devices.
[1]
From 1981 to 1999, Taylor was a Member of the
Royal Fine Art Commission which now forms part of the
Design Council . From 1986 to 1988, she was design consultant for the
Commission for New Towns . In 1988, Taylor was the subject of a documentary on
The South Bank Show , and, in 1992, her work was profiled in a monograph by
Edward Lucie-Smith .
In the
1988 Birthday Honours , Taylor was appointed a
Commander of the Order of the British Empire . In 1999, she restored the
Virginia Quay Settlers Monument at
Blackwall, London ,
[3] adding a
mariner's astrolabe . In 2005, a major exhibition of her work was held at the
Cass Sculpture Foundation in Goodwood titled The Seed Series . In 2009, this exhibition travelled to
Canary Wharf in London.
Three of her works are Grade II listed structures: the Virginia Quay Settlers Monument ,
[4] Timepiece in
St Katharine Docks , London,
[5] and the Octo sculpture and reflecting pool,
[6] in Milton Keynes. The Octo is a "continuous strip of stainless steel, 12ft high, forms a sinuous foil to the
Miesian purism of Stuart Mosscrop's town office buildings".
[7] It is an early example of the
Milton Keynes Development Corporation ’s public art programme.
Wendy Taylor: Spirit of Enterprise (1995).
Canary Wharf , London
Taylor lives and works in London. She is a fellow of the
Royal Zoological Society .
[2] [
dubious –
discuss ]
The Time Party dispute
In 2019 Taylor was in dispute with The Time Party after the minor pro-
Brexit party used an image of Timepiece on their website and on their merchandise. Talking to
The Observer , Taylor said "It is not so much about the politics for me, it is about using Timepiece in a way I did not intend. The Time party may say that the image is just a sundial, but it is clearly based on my work.”
[8]
Exhibitions
Kasmin Gallery, 1966.
[9]
Exhibited Tier and Column at the British Council exhibition 'British Printmakers 1968–1970'.
[10]
Sculpture 66, AIA Gallery, London 1966.
[11]
Axiom Gallery, London, 1970.
[1]
Angela Flowers Gallery, London, 1972.
[1]
24th King's Lynn Festival, Norfolk, 1974.
[1]
World Trade Centre, London, 1974.
[1]
Annely Juda Fine Art , London, 1975.
[1]
Oxford Gallery, Oxford, 1976.
[1]
Oliver Downing Gallery, Dublin, 1976.
[1]
Oliver Downing Gallery, Dublin, 1979.
[1]
'Building Art- The Process', The Building Centre Gallery, London, 1986.
[1]
Austin, Desmond & Phipps, London, 1992.
[1]
'Art and Engineering', The Osbourne Group, London, 1998.
[1]
'The Seed Series', Cass Sculpture Foundation Gallery, London, 2005.
[1]
'The Seed Series',
Canary Wharf , London, 2009.
[1]
Works
Astrolabe on the
Virginia Quay Settlers Monument
Jester , Cambridge
Dung Beetles sculpture at
London Zoo
1971: Triad ,
Somerville College, Oxford
1973: Timepiece ,
St Katharine Docks , London
1979/80: Octo , Norfolk House,
Milton Keynes
1982: Essence , Saxon Court, Milton Keynes
1983: Gazebo ,
Golders Hill Park , London Barnet
1986: Pharos ,
East Kilbride South Lanarkshire
1987: Docklands Enterprise , West Dock/Marsh Lane
1987: Globe Sundial Sculpture , Marine Walk, Swansea
1994: Jester ,
Emmanuel College, Cambridge , and the
Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens , Purchase, USA
1997: Rope Circle , Hermitage Basin, London
1997: Spirit of Barrow
1999: Dung Beetles , Millennium Conservation Centre, Regent's Park, London
1999: Virginia Quay Settlers Monument , Jamestown Way, London (restoration of the 1928 monument)
2000:
Tortoises with Triangle and Time ,
Holland Park , London
2000: The Millennium Fountain , River Walk, Enfield
2001: Voyager ,
Wapping High Street
2003: Knowledge , Library Square,
Queen Mary and Westfield College , London
2006: Sycamore , sculpture garden at
Cass Sculpture Foundation , Goodwood
Awards
Awards received by Taylor
[1]
1964
Walter Neurath Award
1965
Pratt Award
1966
Sainsbury Award
1977
‘Duias na Riochta’ (Kingdom Prize)
Gold Medal at the Listowel Graphics Exhibition, County Kerry, Eire
1977
Arts Council Award
1978
First Prize Silk-screen, Barcham Green Print Competition
1988
Commander of the British Empire
1989
Fellow of the Zoological Society[
citation needed ]
1993
Fellow of Queen Mary College, University of London
1994
Fellow of the Royal Society of British Sculptors
2002
Civic Trust Partnership Award, Chase Green, Enfield
2004
Building of the Year Award, Architectural Sculpture
2004
Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts
References
^
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"About" . Wendy Taylor . Retrieved 12 December 2020 .
^
a
b
"Wendy Taylor | Artists | CASS Sculpture Foundation" . www.sculpture.org.uk . Retrieved 17 December 2020 . [
dead link ]
^
"First Settlers Monument" . www.tower-bridge.org.uk . Retrieved 8 March 2017 .
^
Historic England .
"Virginia Quay Settlers Monument (Grade II) (1442213)" .
National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 10 October 2018 .
^
Historic England .
"Timepiece Sculpture (Grade II) (1391106)" .
National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 10 October 2018 .
^
Historic England .
"Octo sculpture and reflecting pool (Grade II) (1432576)" .
National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 10 October 2018 .
^
"Sculpture up front" . Art Monthly . No. 43. February 1981. pp. 7–9.
^
" 'I'm livid,' sculptor says as Brexiters use her sundial artwork" . The Guardian . 14 September 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2020 .
^ Wolfram, Eddie. 'An earlier situation and current hard-edge trends', Arts Review , Vol. 18, Issue 3, 19 February 1966, p. 51.
^
"British Council exhibition BRITISH PRINTMAKERS 1968–1970" . Archived from
the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 30 May 2019 .
^ Burland, Cottie, 'Sculpture 66', Arts Review , Vol. 18, Issue 24, 10 December 1966, p. 554.
External links
International National Artists