Phillip Boydell
Phillip Boydell (1896 - 1984) was a British designer and illustrator.
Life and work
Boydell was born on 21 May 1896 in Tyldesley Lancashire, to Oliver Boydell (a master decorator) and Merinda.[1] He obtained a scholarship at the Manchester School of Art,[2] but his studies were interrupted by conscription in 1914. During his service in the Royal Navy, his vessel the tugboat Blackcock[3] was lost off Murmansk in winter,[4] but Boydell lived to tell the tale,[5] and was able to continue his education at the Royal College of Art.[2]
In 1923 he married sculptor Bertha White.[6]
In 1926 he was offered the position of Art Director at the London Press Exchange,[2] and was on the Board of Directors when he retired in 1961.
Boydell is best known for two posters and a typeface.
- The Squander Bug,[7] a poster encouraging people not to spend money wastefully but invest in savings bonds,[8] was so successful that derivatives were used in several other countries. This he created whilst in bed with influenza[2]
- The Black Widow poster [9][10] for road safety (for which Boydell was art director) which aroused controversy for its (in those days) relatively direct approach.
- The Festival font [11][12] was the official typeface for the 1951 Festival of Britain, and was used in all the communications for the festival.
He died at home in 1984.
References
- ↑ http://www.heardfamilyhistory.org.uk/Detailsindex/fam6224.html
- 1 2 3 4 Gowing, Mary (1957). "The Creative Mind in Advertising". Art and Industry (Studio Publishing). 62,63: 134..
- ↑ http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D7688946 National Service Record; National archive ref: ADM 337/53/315
- ↑ http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C4115396 Loss of Tug Blackcock National Archives ref ADM 137/3725
- ↑ Imperial War Museum Archive 8776/02
- ↑ http://www.boydell.com/bft/Main/n61.htm#3193
- ↑ Darracott, Joseph; Belinda Loftus (1981). Second World War Poster. London: Imperial War Museum. ISBN 978-0-901627-06-3.
- ↑ Bryant, Mark (Aug 1989). World War II in cartoons. New York: Smithmark. p. 116. ISBN 978-0-8317-9658-7.
- ↑ V&A collection
- ↑ wordpress.com
- ↑ 'Festival' at paratype website
- ↑ 'Festival' at Linotype website