Eric Holden

Arthur Eric Rowton Gill ARA was an English sculptor, typeface designer and printmaker. Following Chichester Technical and Art School, Gill moved to London in 1900 to train with the ecclesiastical architect W.D. Caröe. Finding architecture somewhat pedestrian, he took stonemasonry lessons at Westminster Technical Institute and calligraphy lessons at the Central School of Arts and Crafts, coming under the influence of Edward Johnson, the designer of the London Underground's typeface. In 1903, he ceased his attempts to become an architect, instead of becoming a monumental mason, letter-cutter and calligrapher. 

Based in Ditchling, Gill began direct carving of stone figures, the semi-abstract figures taking their influence from medieval statuary, mixed with influences from Classical statuary from the Greeks and Romans, with a little Post-Impressionism added in. Gill was offered major commissions from Westminster Cathedral for its Stations of the Cross (1914); a series of war memorials including the Grade II* memorial in Trumpington; three of the sculptures for Charles Holden's 1928 headquarters of London Underground at 55 Broadway, St James's; and a series of sculptures for the new 1932 Broadcasting House — the list continues. Never one to rest on his laurels, he was at the same time engaged in typographical adventures. 

Gill had collaborated with Edward Johnson on the latter's initial thoughts on his London Transport typeface, but in 1925, Gill designed Perpetua on his own, and Gill Sans between 1927–30. For the Golden Cockerel Press, he created, in 1929, a bolder typeface to complement wood engravings. And of course, Gill was publishing decorated books. His 1929 Canterbury Tales was an epic work, with a whole series of beautiful wood engravings.

The first decades of the 20th century were a period of artistic upheaval, with modern art movements including Cubism, Surrealism, Futurism and Dadaism questioning centuries of traditional views of what art should be. Using abstraction, experimental forms and interdisciplinary techniques, painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers and performance artists all pushed the boundaries of creative expression.

Major exhibitions, like the 1913 Armory Show in New York City — also known as the “International Exhibition of Modern Art,” in which works like the radically angular Nude Descending a Staircase by Marcel Duchamp caused a sensation — challenged the perspective of viewers and critics and heralded the arrival of modern art in the United States. But the movement’s revolutionary spirit took shape in the 19th century.

The Industrial Revolution, which ushered in new technology and cultural conditions across the world, transformed art from something mostly commissioned by the wealthy or the church to work that responded to personal experiences. The Impressionist style emerged in 1860s France with artists like Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne and Edgar Degas quickly painting works that captured moments of light and urban life. Around the same time in England, the Pre-Raphaelites, like Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, borrowed from late medieval and early Renaissance art to imbue their art with symbolism and modern ideas of beauty.

Emerging from this disruption of the artistic status quo, modern art went further in rejecting conventions and embracing innovation. The bold legacy of leading modern artists Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Piet Mondrian and many others continues to inform visual culture today.

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Bring energy and an array of welcome colors and textures into your space by decorating with figurative fine-art prints and works on paper.

Figurative art stands in contrast to abstract art, which is more expressive than representational. The oldest-known work of figurative art is a figurative painting — specifically, a rock painting of an animal made over 40,000 years ago in Borneo. This remnant of a remote past has long faded, but its depiction of a cattle-like creature in elegant ocher markings endures.

Since then, figurative art has evolved significantly as it continues to represent the world, including a breadth of works on paper, including printmaking. This includes woodcuts, which are a type of relief print with perennial popularity among collectors. The artist carves into a block and applies ink to the raised surface, which is then pressed onto paper. There are also planographic prints, which use metal plates, stones or other flat surfaces as their base. The artist will often draw on the surface with grease crayon and then apply ink to those markings. Lithographs are a common version of planographic prints.

Figurative art printmaking was especially popular during the height of the Pop art movement, and this kind of work can be seen in artist Andy Warhol’s extensive use of photographic silkscreen printing. Everyday objects, logos and scenes were given a unique twist, whether in the style of a comic strip or in the use of neon colors.

Explore an impressive collection of figurative art prints for sale on 1stDibs and read about how to arrange your wall art.