‘An astonishing collection of British Pop Art’
Thanks to its latest acquisitions, Pallant House Gallery now holds one of the most important international Pop Art collections With
IT was one of the key art movements of the 20th century – with its bold use of colours and the immediacy of its work Pop Art had a huge impact. And now, thanks to their latest acquisitions, Pallant House Gallery boasts one of the most significant international public collections of British Pop Art.
It’s a group of 175 modern and contemporary British paintings, prints and sculptures from the collection of architects MJ Long and Sir Colin St John Wilson acquired by the nation for the Chichester gallery.
An outstanding collection of Pop Art and British figurative art has been allocated to Pallant House Gallery from the estate of the architect MJ Long via the Acceptance in Lieu (AIL) scheme, run by the Arts Council.
The Wilson collection includes celebrated works by some of the most important figures in Modern British art, including Michael Andrews, Frank Auerbach, David Bomberg, Anthony Caro, Patrick Caulfield, Prunella Clough, Richard Hamilton, David Hockney, Howard Hodgkin, RB Kitaj, Eduardo Paolozzi and Colin Self.
The Wilson collection was formed by renowned American architect MJ Long, Lady Wilson, OBE (1939 – 2018), and her husband, British architect Prof Sir Colin St John Wilson RA (1922–2007), who are best-known as the architects of the British Library and their 2006 extension to Pallant House Gallery.
Together they formed one of the most significant collections of post-war British art, reflecting their close friendships with the leading artists of the period.
Director of Pallant House Gallery
Simon Martin says: ‘We are thrilled to have acquired such an extraordinary collection of modern art for the nation through the Acceptance in Lieu scheme.
‘MJ Long and Colin St John Wilson were much loved and respected figures in the worlds of art and architecture, leaving behind not only extraordinary public buildings and private studios, but amassing an astonishing collection of British Pop and figurative art.
‘To be able to preserve this almost in its entirety is cause for great celebration at a very difficult time for public museums and galleries.
‘We look forward to putting many of these works on display amongst our collection of Modern British art.’
The 175 artworks represent Pallant House Gallery’s most important acquisition of the past 15 years and join a previous notable donation of more than 400 artworks by the couple through Art Fund in 2006.
Prof Wilson (known to friends as ‘Sandy’) began the collection prior to his marriage to his second wife MJ Long in 1972, though from that point onwards she played an integral role, designing numerous studios for artists including RB Kitaj, Frank Auerbach, Sir Peter Blake, Paul Huxley and Gordon House.
The couple were memorably painted by the American artist Kitaj in a family portrait joining Pallant House Gallery’s collection, The Architects (1981), which depicts the couple with their children Harry and Sal in the studio Long had designed for the artist.
The interior of the family home in Cambridge (designed by Wilson) was depicted by Sir Howard Hodgkin in his vibrant painting Grantchester Road (1973-75) in which the mezzanine and fireplace are depicted amidst swirls of expressive colour.
The painting also joins the gallery’s collection and is pictured on the front page.
Together with Richard Hamilton, Nigel Henderson and Eduardo Paolozzi, Wilson had been a member of the radical Independent Group, a precursor to the development of British Pop Art, which met at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London in the 1950s to discuss architecture, art, design and advertising.
Wilson acquired Paolozzi's ink drawings Picador (c.1947), and Head (The Early Head) (1953), together with early screen-prints and posters for his exhibitions, and the large aluminium sculpture Artificial Sun (1964), all of which will join the gallery’s collection.
These artists were to become key figures in the British Pop movement and the collection also includes Hamilton’s etching, aquatint and collage Swingeing London (1967) depicting Mick Jagger and the art dealer Robert Fraser in the back of a police van outside Chichester Magistrates Court following a conviction for drugs possession.
Other examples of British Pop include David Hockney’s Kaisarion with all his Beauty (1961); 65 prints by R.B. Kitaj, along with works by Sir Peter Blake, Allen Jones, Mark Lancaster, Colin Self, Joe Tilson and the SwedishAmerican artist Claes Oldenburg.
Edward Harley, chairman of the AIL panel, adds: ‘This allocation is particularly gratifying given the close connection of MJ Long to the gallery, for which she and Rolfe Kentish designed an award-winning extension known as the New Wing.
‘Assembled with her husband, Sir Colin St John Wilson, this is an impressive collection that speaks of their friendships with many of Britain’s most cherished artists.’
And Sir Nicholas Serota, chairman of the Arts Council, says: ‘Few architects have been closer to artists than MJ Long and Sandy Wilson. ‘Their enthusiasms and friendships are reflected in a collection that is highly personal but also a remarkable survey of some of the most important aspects of advanced British Art in the postwar period.
‘It is especially fitting that the collection will have a permanent home in Chichester in the galleries that MJ and Sandy designed as an award-winning extension to Pallant House Gallery.’
A collection that speaks of their friendships with many of Britain’s most cherished artists
This allocation is particularly gratifying given the connection of MJ Long to the gallery