Sven Berlin

Mid Century St. Ives artist Sven Berlin 'A lover's embrace' pen and ink on paper

1995

William Heath Robinson (British, 1872 - 1944) 'Boring The First Tunnel With An Early Type Of Rotary Excavator, And The Red Flag', circa 1935 (railway ribaldry was published in this year) The former signed 'W. Heath Robinson (lower left) and inscribed with title (lower left and right) The former to mount 14 X 10.1/4in. (35.5 X 26cm.) The latter 1.1/2 X 8.1/2in. (3.8 X 21.6 cm.) Literature: Railway Ribaldry, first published by the Great Western Railway, Paddington, 1935. William Heath Robinson was an English cartoonist and illustrator best known for drawings of ridiculously complicated machines for achieving simple objectives. During the First World War, he drew large numbers of cartoons, depicting ever-more unlikely secret weapons being used by the combatants. In the UK the term "Heath Robinson" entered popular language during this time as a description of any unnecessarily complex and implausible contrivance. Its continuing popularity was undoubtedly linked to Second World War Britain's shortages and the need to "make do and mend". In the course of his work, Robinson also wrote and illustrated three childrens books including The Adventures of Uncle Lubin (1902) which is regarded as the genesis of his depiction of unlikely machines. The inventions he drew were frequently powered by steam boilers or kettles, heated by candles or a spirit lamp and usually kept running by balding, bespectacled men in overalls. There would be complex pulley arrangements, threaded by lengths of knotted string. One of his most famous series of illustrations accompanied the first Professor Branestawm book written by Norman Hunter. The stories provided a perfect backdrop for Robinson's drawings. One of the automatic analysis machines built for Bletchley Park during the Second World War to assist in the decryption of German message traffic was named "Heath Robinson" in his honour. He died in September 1944 during the Second World War and is buried in East Finchley Cemetery. The Heath Robinson Museum in Pinner opened in October 2016 to house a collection of nearly 1,000 original artworks owned by The William Heath Robinson Trust. In the Wallace and Gromit...

Eduard Xavier Kapp (British, 1890 – 1978) Hot soup Pen on paper Inscribed and dated ‘Hot Soup / 15-12-38’ (upper right) and signed ‘kapp’ (lower right) 7.1/2 x 12.3/8 in. (19 x 31.5 cm.) Edmond Kapp was born in Islington, London, on 5 November 1890, of American and German Jewish parentage. He gave himself the middle initial ‘X’ – sometimes said to stand for Xavier – to distinguish himself from his father Emil Kapp, who was a wine merchant. However, his parents called him ‘Eddie’ while his wife and friends knew him as ‘Peter’. During his early years, Kapp was continually ill and, while convalescing, entertained himself by drawing at home. As his health improved, he attended Dame Alice Owen’s School, Islington (1903-10), with periods at Berlin University (1909) and L’Institut Français pour les Etrangers, Paris (1909). He then read Languages at Christ’s College, Cambridge (1910-13), though spent most of his time writing and drawing. Kapp took a studio in London, and worked intensively until the outbreak of the First World War, contributing to the Daily News, the Onlooker and other periodicals. During the war, he served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Sussex Regiment on the Western Front, and then in Intelligence, rising to the position of Staff Captain on Haig’s Staff. Finally, he founded and directed the Neutral Press Counter-propaganda Section. In 1919, Kapp returned to London and, after abortive periods at three art schools, worked alone. In that year, he made his name with an exhibition of caricatures, held at Furst’s Gallery, London, and accompanied by a catalogue introduced by Max Beerbohm. This soon led to contracts with three London periodicals and a book of caricatures, Personalities, published by Martin Secker. Through the 1920s and 30s, his drawings of musicians and other personalities appeared in a wide variety of periodicals, most notably Time & Tide; were collected in further volumes; and were exhibited at the Leicester Galleries. He considered himself to be a ‘character-portraitist’, producing images of psychological not satirical power, and disliking the term ‘caricature’. Between the wars, Kapp developed other aspects of his artistic talents, the desire to study and the search for subject matter often taking him abroad. For instance, work at the British Academy, Rome, under Antonio Sciortino...

Sunil Das - Untitled - 9 x 7 inches & 9.25 x 7 inches (unframed size) Pen and Ink on Paper, 2012 & 2010 (Set of 2) Inclusive of shipment in ready to hang form. The exceptions are the faces such as the profiles of bearded men in which the content is a mere excuse for the lines to create a pattern of untrammeled playfulness. Of course the Japanese face...

Chef Pasta - Vintage Illustration in Ink and Watercolor A charming illustration, by Irene Pattinson (American, 1909-1999), shows a chef in an 1800's toque blanche, pouring oil from an ornate bottle over a bowl. His face, with spectacles, a moustache and goatee in fine line work, is painted in vibrant pink watercolor for an added splash of color. Signed in the bottom right corner, "i.p." Presented in a new white mat with foam core backing. Mat size: 8.5"H x 11"W Paper size: 6.75"H x 6.75"W Image size: 4.13"H x 3.63"W Irene Pattinson (American, 1909-1999) studied at the California School of Fine Art (now The San Francisco Art Institute), San Francisco State College and The Marion Hartwell School of Design. She was President of the San Francisco Woman Artists Association 1955-56. Provenance: The Artist, Estate of Irene Pattinson: David Carlson; Estate of Larry Miller Fine Art, Robert Azensky Fine Art. Solo Exhibitions: Lucien Labaudt Gallery 1955; San Francisco Museum of Art, 1961 (39 works). Selected Group Exhibitions: San Francisco Art Association Annual 1948, 54, 55; San Francisco Woman Artists, 1957-1960; Oakland Art Museum Annual, 1951, 58; California Palace of the Legion of Honor, 1960; Richmond Art Center, 1955, 56, 57, 58; San Francisco Art Institute 1959, 60. The Art Bank of the San Francisco Art Association, 1958, 59, 60, 62, 63; Winter Invitational, California Palace of The Legion of Honor, San Francisco, 1960; Fourth Winter Invitational, California Palace of The Legion of Honor, San Francisco, 1963. Awards: First Place, San Francisco Woman Artists Assoc., 1957, 1959; San Francisco Art Festival 1957;Literature: San Francisco Art Institute - A catalog of the Art Ban 1962/63; San Francisco and the Second Wave: The Blair Collection Exhibitions: 1963 The Art Bank of the San Francisco Art Association, San Francisco, CA 1963 California Palace of The Legion of Honor: Forth Winter Invitational, San Francisco, CA 1962 The Art Bank of the San Francisco Art Association, San Francisco, CA 1961 San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco, CA 1960 California...