Fred Taylor (b.1875; d.1963)

Fred Taylor was born in London on March 22 1875, the son of William Taylor. Taylor studied briefly at Goldsmith’s College, London, where he won a gold medal for his posters, and a travelling scholarship to study in Italy. At some point working in the Waring and Gillow Studio, Taylor was a poster artist, illustrator, decorator and a watercolourist. Particularly noted as a poster artist from 1908 to the 1940s, and was regularly commissioned by the LNER, EMB and shipping companies. Taylor also exhibited regularly at the Royal Academy, and other provincial societies. Taylor’s designs frequently referred to architectural subjects.

During the Second World War, Taylor was employed on naval camouflage. He also executed commissions for London Transport, including ‘Back Room Boys’, where the underlying concept and use of central image with a surrounding border were probably taken from A S Hartrick’s series of lithographs on war work called Playing the Game, 1918, although ‘their finely balanced colouring and their superb draughtsmanship are peculiar to Taylor at his best’. Married to Florence R Sarg, with a son and a daughter, Taylor is also remembered for his decorating work, most notably for ceilings for the former Underwriter’s Room at Lloyds of London, and murals for Austin Reed’s red laquer room in 1930. He was also the author of a number of publications.

Information taken from: Livingston, A. and Livingston, I., Dictionary of Graphic Design and Designers, 1992, p.187, London Transport Museum Database, February 2000, quoting Riddell, 1994, Darracott, J. and Loftus, B., Second World War Posters, 1981 (1972), p.55

R.H.Talmadge

Talmadge joined the RAF in 1940, having previously studied package design under Milner Gray, and ‘was in control of the packaging of a firm of canners and packers of food products for the Home and Export Markets’. The RAF gave him the ‘opportunity to study various types of aircraft and their appearance on the ground and in the air’. His images tended to depict aerial combat, and he ‘has infused a dramatic sense’ into his pictures. Largely a paintings artist, he experimented in poster design, with his design ‘did YOU tell the enemy?’ although a ‘horror’ poster, imparted ‘its message simply and adequately, the test of any good poster’. Whilst in the RAF Talmadge was engaged in cartography and painting in water-colours and oils, and provided art classes for RAF and Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) personnel.

Information collated from: L.A.C. ‘Artists in Uniform: R.H. Talmadge’, Art and Industry, Vol. 35, No. 208, October 1943, pp.121-123.

R. Sturbelle

Worked at the Belgian Information Centre in New York, USA.

Information collated from: Minneapolis Public Library, ‘War Posters from the Kittleson Collection’, http://www.mplib.org/wpdb/index.asp?searchcontrib=Sturbelle,+R., last updated September 19 2003, accessed March 25 2004

P.A. Staynes

Staynes designed posters for Canadian Pacific in the 1930s. Described as ‘ingenious workmanship’, Staynes designed large scaled painted panel art for the first class public rooms of the Kenya and Uganda ships in 1952 for the British India Steam Naviagtion Company, depicting ‘the beasts of the forest in their natural surroundings, with a background showing the famous Murchison Falls in Uganda.

Information taken from: CPR Heritage, ‘Canadian Pacific to Japan & China’, http://www.cprheritage.com/photo_graphics/graphics/world/pages/a6031.htm, accessed October 4 2003; Merchantnavyofficers.com, ‘Kenya and Uganda’, http://www.merchantnavyofficers.com/KenUg.html, accessed October 4 2003.

John S Smith

Smith was active in the 1940s and 1950s, and exhibited at the RSMA.

Information collated from: Luxury Liners of the Past, ‘Postcard Artists’, http://www.geocites.com/luxury_liners/Artists.html, accessed October 3 2003.