A n Artistic Journey of Genius
Frank Allen (1986-1977) was a born and bred a Londoner.
He enrolled at the embryonic Dartington College of Arts near Totnes, Devon and was taught by Bernard Leach and Mark Tobey - founder of the art curriculum at Cornish College of the Arts Seattle, Washington USA. He then went on to Chelsea School of Art. His mentors were Henry Moore, Graham Sutherland and Ceri Richards.
His group shows include the groundbreaking Leicester Galleries Exhibition: Artists of Fame and Promise. Picasso and other zeitgeist artists were on the same roster, The London Group at the Royal Academy, The Norwich Twenty Group at Norwich Castle.
His solo shows include the Cooling Galleries London, Bradford Municipal Art Gallery, Halifax House Oxford University, the Oxford Gallery, Oxford, the Warbleswick Art Gallery Suffolk, the William Ware Gallery London, Maddermarket Theatre Norwich, the Ashgate Gallery Surrey.
Retrospective shows include the Old Granary Studio, Norfolk, the Richard Bradley Atelier, Norfolk, Old Pier Studio, Kilmun, Scotland, at Coral Bay, Cyprus, at John Kohan, Delaware, Ohio, Cowal Open Studios, Kilmun, Scotland.
Private and public collections include Norwich Castle Museum, Birmingham City Art Gallery, the Iris Birtwhistle Collection, the Vicky Knipe Collection, the Paula Stone Collection, the John Kohan Ohio Collection, the Stephen Alexander-Phelan Collection, the Barnes Collection, the Carol Varnava Collection, the Jill Campbell-Mackay Collection.
He worked at his studios in London and Norfolk.
In 1978 he appeared in Who’s Who in Art.
A Modern
British Master
It could be argued that Frank’s oeuvre spanned the most important decades in art history. He was four years old at the turn of the century - the 1900’s. And probably, like most children, drawing copiously. Not wishing to be pretentious - Pablo Picasso’s quote is apt:
Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.
Frank found the act of drawing inspirational, and he is quoted as saying:
drawing to me means line
drawing to me means line
Found in a Hedge 1952 Gouache 66x51cm
Rustic 1953 Acrylic on board 34x45cm
Mammoth Root, Thetford Chase 1952 Pen and Wash 49x39cm
Old Street Stump 1953 Gouache 52x41cm
1950s
The 1950’s were a turning point in his career. The Root Studies are heavily accented by Moore and Sutherland, they go back to nature and organic form. They are assured and well understood by the artist. And they make full use of pen and gouache: 1952 Found in a Hedge gouache; 1952 Mammoth Root pen & wash; 1953 Old Tree Stump gouache; 1953 Rustic acrylic on board.
Jingles 1952 Oil on paper 22x15cm
Tombstones 1953 Oil on board 21x29cm
Small City 1958 Oil on board 33x39cm
The Lock 1958 Oil on board 33x43cm
Shore Leave 1958 Oil on board 31x41cm
The Tobey influenced 1952 Jingles oil on paper and homage to the Bauhaus and Paul Klee could not be more apparent than in the 1953 Tombstones oil on board. Which led to the block colour 1958 series: Small City oil on board, The Lock oil on board and Shore Leave oil on board.
Pyramids 1961 Acrylic on canvas 40x50cm
Seated Woman 1963 Oil on board 20x15cm
Three Ships Went a Sailing 1960 Egg Tempera on Gesso 20x30cm
The Estuary 1960 Oil 29x40cm
Two green hills 1961 Oil on canvas 38x55cm
Birds of the Fields 1960 Acrylic on panel 60x50cm
The 60’s was an extraordinary decade for the world. In Frank’s case he embarked on painting landscapes, seascapes, one good portrait and various outerspace themes.
Landscapes: The 1960 Birds of a Field is an outstanding example, acrylic on panel, twinned with the 1961 Two Green Hills oil on canvas and Pyramids acrylic on canvas. Seascapes: 1960 The Estuary oil on board, 1960 Three Ships Went a Sailing egg tempura on gesso and 1960 Ship Shape acrylic.
Portrait: 1963 Seated Woman oil on board is an accomplished painting.
1960s
Green Alert 1965 Acrylic on board 24x16cm
Green Descent 1965 Acrylic on board 32x21cm
Landed 1965 Acrylic on board 25x20cm
Space Town 1965 Acrylic on card 50x33cm
Town Under Sun 1965 Acrylic on Card 50x33cm
Yellow Crescent Tower 1965 Watercolour 26x21cm
Blast Off 1966 On Linen 46x61cm
Desert Bloom 1966 Oil on board 22x31.5cm
Acrylic Composition 1967 Acrylic 38x55cm
Colour Form 1967 Acrylic on board 39x56cm
Fantasy Land 1967 Acrylic on board 45.5x54.5
Oriental Fantasy 1967 Acrylic on board 54x44cm
The Hidden Cities 1968 Egg temera on board 46x61cm
Behold 1969 Acrylic on board 45.5x62cm
BIrd and Egg 1969 Oil on board 21x30cm
Flightpath 1969 Acrylic 45x61cm
Into Space 1969 Acrylic 45x61cm
Journey to the Moon 1969 Acrylic on board 40.5cmx61cm
Little Spaceship 1969 Acrylic 15x28cm
Moves in Space 1969 Acrylic 45x60cm
Propulsion 1969 Acrylic on board 61x51cm
Spaceship 1969 Acrylic 24x18.5cm
Spaceway 1969 Acrylic on board 38.5x56.5cm
Take Off 1 1969 Acrylic on board 46x61cm
To Heaven 1969 Acrylic on card 51x34cm
The above series of works speak for themselves through their titles. There is an element of Malevich’s thoughtful Suprematism, with the delicate placing of form for one, and the bold colours for another.
1965 Green Alert; 1965 Green Desert; 1965 Landed; 1965 Space Town; 1965 Town Under Sun; 1965 Yellow Crested Tower.
In 1966 Frank gave us two significant works in Blast Off and Desert Bloom. Kandinsky was an influence and 1967 Colour Form; 1967 Oriental Fantasy; 1967 Fantasy Land ; 1967 Acrylic Composition are good examples of this, combining colour, synergy and movement.
Paul Klee goes hand in hand with Wassily Kandinsky and The Hidden Cities (1968)reflects this adoration.
The Apollo 11 mission landing on the moon, was a momentous event in world history and for the artist. This was his most prolific period.
He was able to celebrate in style: 1969 Take Off 1; 1969 Journey to the Moon; 1969 Little Spacecraft; 1969 Moves in Space; 1969 Flightpath; 1969 Into Space; 1969 Bird and Egg; 1969 Spaceship; 1969 Propulsion; 1969 To Heaven; 1969 Spaceway and 1969 Behold.
The Abbess India 1970 Ink on paper 86x56cm
Big Fish Little Fish 1975 Acrylic on board 46x61cm
Butterflies 1975 56x38cm
Fish 1975 Acrylic on paper 47x24cm
Fish Tank 1975 Acrylic on paper 71x60cm
Fish Tank 2 1975 Acrylic on paper 10x8cm
Flower Duet 1975 Acrylic on board 55x77cm
Flowers 1975 Oil on canvas 29x22cm
Forms on Nature 1975 Acrylic on board 45x66.5cm
Garden View 1975 Acrylic on panel 45x55cm
Honeysuckle and Butterfly 1975 Acrylic on panel 39x35cm
Mimosa 1975 Acrylic on board 29x21cm
Stem of Pink Flowers 1975 Acrylic on board 57x38cm
The Oracle 1975 Acrylic on board 56x45.5cm
The Catch 1975 Acrylic on board 56x45.5cm
1970s
The 1970 - 1974 period was somewhat retrospective.
The Abbess india ink on paper 86x55cm is reminiscent of 16th century Moghul art and is one of the best artworks produced during this time.
1975 was a prolific time with 29 pieces produced. The Oracle in the surrealist manner; the fish series and the flora and fauna works - are the outstanding examples.
1975 The Oracle; 1975 Big Fish Little Fish; 1975 The Catch; 1975 Fish; 1975 Fish Tank; 1975 Fish Tank 2; 1975 Flowers; 1975 Butterflies; 1975 Flower Duet; 1975 Forms in Nature; 1975 Garden View; 1975 Honeysuckle & Butterfly; 1975 Mimosa and 1975 Stem of Pink Flowers.
Little Market 1976 Acrylic 23x29cm
Girl in a Blue Hood 1977 Acrylic on linen 24x17.5cm
The Caravan 1976 Oil on Linen 25x20cm
Angel Poise 1977 Acrylic on card 13x11cm
The Sculptor 1976 Acrylic on board 50x40cm
The Clown 1977 Acrylic 27x20cm
1976 was a mixed journey into Modernism, Fauvism and naïve folk art as can be seen in The Caravan and The Little Market.
The Sculptor is a striking image of perhaps the young Romanian Constanin Brancusi (1876 -1957), a pioneer of Modernism and some say the most influential sculptor of the 2Oth century.
Nine portraits were painted in the artist’s final days at the age of eighty-one. Eight of these are semi-religious after Madonna imagery, with the pierrot style: The Clown being the exception. 1977 Angel Poise and 1977 Girl in a Blue Hood.
During his working life as an artist, the archive can account for 366 works. But there are always new works cropping up worldwide. His decision to leave London in 1948 for Norfolk, after he started to gain success at the Leicester Galleries, can be attributed to his ill health. Had he been able to stay in the London scene, there is no doubt he would have received the recognition he justly deserved.
Frank Allen 1897-1977 was survived by his wife Florence who fought hard and long to promote her husband’s work. She died peacefully at their home in Norwich in 1988.