Julian Trevelyan (1910-1988) British Artist & Printmaker

A great 20th Century English printmaker with a distinctive and abstract style

Julian Otto Trevelyan RA (1910–1988) was a pioneering British artist, poet, and educator whose influence on 20th-century art continues to resonate through the vibrant prints and paintings he left behind. A founding member of the British Surrealist movement, Trevelyan’s career spanned decades of innovation, collaboration, and teaching, shaping the trajectory of modern British art.

Early Life and Intellectual Roots

Born in Dorking, Surrey, into a distinguished and intellectually rich family, Julian Trevelyan was the son of the poet and classical scholar Robert Calverley Trevelyan and Elizabeth van der Hoeven. His grandfather, Sir George Trevelyan, was a liberal politician, and his uncle, G.M. Trevelyan, a renowned historian. This cultivated environment exposed Julian to the philosophical and artistic currents of the early 20th century, including the Bloomsbury Group and thinkers like Bertrand Russell and G.E. Moore.

Educated at Bedales School and later at Trinity College, Cambridge, Trevelyan initially studied English Literature. However, his passion for visual art led him to abandon academia and move to Paris in 1930, where he trained at Stanley William Hayter’s Atelier . There, he worked alongside avant-garde luminaries such as Max Ernst, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, and Oskar Kokoschka.

Artistic Evolution and Surrealist Influence

Trevelyan’s early work was deeply rooted in Surrealism, and he exhibited at the landmark International Surrealist Exhibition in London in 1936. His art from this period explored dreams, subconscious imagery, and the poetic potential of everyday life. Yet, by 1938, disillusioned by political extremism, he distanced himself from the Surrealist group and began producing work in support of pacifist causes and the Spanish Republican government.

Wartime Innovation and Camouflage

During World War II, Trevelyan served as a Camouflage Officer with the Royal Engineers in North Africa and Palestine. Alongside artists like Roland Penrose, he developed innovative deception techniques, including dummy tanks and desert camouflage strategies that successfully misled enemy forces.

Teaching and Legacy

Trevelyan’s impact extended beyond his own studio. From 1950 to 1963, he taught at the Chelsea School of Art and later became Head of the Etching Department at the Royal College of Art. His students included David Hockney, Ron Kitaj, and Norman Ackroyd, and his enthusiasm for printmaking helped spark the British etching revolution of the 1960s.

Personal Life and Collaborations

Trevelyan married twice. His first wife was Ursula Darwin, a descendant of Charles Darwin, with whom he had a son, filmmaker Philip Trevelyan. After their divorce, he married fellow artist Mary Fedden in 1951. The couple lived and worked at Durham Wharf on the Thames in Hammersmith, a location that inspired much of Trevelyan’s later work. Together, they created murals for the Festival of Britain and traveled extensively, sketching scenes that would later become finished artworks.

Artistic Style and Influence

Trevelyan’s work evolved from Surrealism to a more personal style that blended abstraction, landscape, and urban scenes. His Thames Suite (1969), a series of 12 etchings depicting the river from Oxford to the Estuary, remains one of his most celebrated achievements. His fascination with industrial landscapes, machinery, and the poetic qualities of urban life persisted throughout his career.

Market Trends and Exhibitions

Trevelyan’s work remains highly collectible and his etchings and aquatints are particularly popular.

His work is held in major collections, including Tate Britain, which owns over 100 pieces. Retrospectives have been staged at the Royal College of Art, Pallant House Gallery, and Bohun Gallery, which manages his estate and regularly exhibits his work.

Enduring Legacy

Julian Trevelyan’s contribution to British art is multifaceted, he was a visionary printmaker, a poetic painter, a wartime innovator, and a beloved teacher. His ability to blend intellectual rigour with artistic experimentation has earned him a lasting place in the canon of modern British art.

In 1987 he was appointed a Royal Academician, a year before his death in 1988 in London.

Sources: www search including www.artbiogs.co.uk