Sybil Andrews (1898-1992) was an artist associated with the modernist movement and is lauded for her distinctive linocuts and printmaking. Andrews' work is a celebration of the movement found in everyday life from technology, to sports such as horse jumping, to animals and the human figure.
Sybil Andrews (1898-1992) was an artist associated with the modernist movement and is lauded for her distinctive linocuts and printmaking. Andrews' work is a celebration of the movement found in everyday life from technology, to sports such as horse jumping, to animals and the human figure.
She was born in Bury St Edmunds but spent much of her later life in Canada, where she died in 1992. We love how Andrews’ dynamic works shun the concept of perspective and instead use busy compositions to create a vibrancy of movement. Her work epitomises modernist design, with her geometric line work and rich colours suggesting the animation to be found in modern life.
Andrews was a welder at an airplane factory during the First World War, during which time she was also taking an art correspondence course. After the end of the war, Andrews moved to London with her informal business partner Cyril Power, where they shared a studio in Hammersmith. They were frequent collaborators, working together on promotion posters for Wimbledon tennis tournament and the Epsom Derby. Andrew’s work was regularly exhibited at the Exhibition of British Linocuts at the Redfern Gallery for around a decade. In 1951, she was elected to the Society of Canadian Painters, Etchers and Engravers. Andrews’ work can be found in the permanent collections of a number of major museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C.
