Geoffrey Heath Wedgwood, ARCA, RE (6 April 1900 – June 1977) was a British etcher and engraver, best known for his

architectural Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

etchings Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in Intaglio (printmaking), intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may ...

Early life and education

Born in

Leek, Staffordshire Leek is a market town and civil parish in Staffordshire, England, on the River Churnet north east of Stoke-on-Trent. It is an ancient borough and was granted its royal charter in 1214. It is the administrative centre for the Staffordshire ...

, the son of Jane and Frank Wedgwood, an engineer, but brought up in Liverpool, Wedgwood attended the

Liverpool Institute The Liverpool Institute High School for Boys was an all-boys grammar school in the English port city of Liverpool. The school had its origins in 1825 but occupied different premises while the money was found to build a dedicated building on M ...

and then served with the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

in the First World War. From 1919 to 1921 he studied at the Liverpool City School of Art See also Bénézit, ''Dictionary of British Graphic Artists and Illustrators'', p. 546. Winning a scholarship to the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public university, public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City, London, White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design uni ...

, London, he studied engraving there under Sir

Frank Short Sir Francis Job Short PPRE (19 June 1857 – 22 April 1945) was a British printmaker and teacher of printmaking. He revived the practices of mezzotint and pure aquatint, while expanding the expressive power of line in drypoint, etching an ...

and from 1924 under his successor

Malcolm Osborne Malcolm Osborne (1 August 1880 – 22 September 1963) was a British original printmaker known for his intaglio prints of landscapes, urban views and portraits. Chronology *1 August 1880 born at Frome, Somerset, the fourth son of Alfred Ar ...

. He was a Rome scholar at the

British School at Rome The British School at Rome (BSR) is a British interdisciplinary research centre supporting the arts, humanities and architecture established in Rome. Historical and archaeological study are at the core of its activities. History The British Sc ...

, having won the Engraving Prize in 1925, the same year that Edward Irvine Halliday (1902–1984), a fellow Liverpudlian and also a former student at the RCA, won the Painting Prize. According to Edward Morris, writing in the ''

Connoisseur A connoisseur (French language, French Reforms of French orthography, traditional, pre-1835, spelling of , from Middle-French , then meaning 'to be acquainted with' or 'to know somebody/something') is a person who has a great deal of knowledge ...

'', Wedgwood "reverted to architectural subjects; his line became harder and more precise; his effects clearer and sharper; less of his work was etched, more engraved; some of the credit for these effects must go to the printer, David Strang". "In Wedgwood's architectural etchings", wrote Guichard, "the severity of the formal harmonies of square and rectangle in the roofs and walls of old buildings is relieved by gentle caricature in the small local figures that inhabit the scenes and are sympathetically observed."

Career

He later taught at the

from 1932 to 1935 and at the Liverpool City School of Art from 1935 until his retirement in 1960. He also worked as an illustrator. His etchings for menus were shown at the L.N.E.R. exhibition of poster art at Burlington Galleries in 1933. Among various projects for

Martins Bank Martins Bank was a London private bank, trading for much of its time under the symbol of "The Grasshopper", that could trace its origins back to Thomas Gresham and the London goldsmiths, from which it developed into a bank known as Martin's Bank ...

advertising in the early 1950s, he was commissioned together with J. C. Armitage (

Ionicus Joshua Charles Armitage (26 September 1913 – 29 January 1998) was an English illustrator under the pen name Ionicus. Ionicus may be known best for illustrating the covers of Penguin Books, Penguin paperback editions of books by P. G. Wodehous ...

) and F. G. Lodge, to do drawings of English stately homes.

Published works

Not complete * Roberts, Gruffydd Dewi (1935), ''The House that was forgotten'', illus. by Geoffrey Wedgwood. London:

Lovat Dickson Lovat Dickson, born Horatio Henry Lovat Dickson (June 30, 1902 – January 2, 1987), was a notable publisher and writer, the first Canadian to have a major publishing role in Britain. He is best known today for his biographies of Grey Owl, Ri ...

& Thompson Limited * Roberts, Gruffydd Dewi (1937), ''Heron's Island'', illus. by Geoffrey Wedgwood. London: Dent

Awards and honours

* Winner of the Engraving Prize (1925) to be a scholar at the British School at Rome with two works: ''Negro Dentist'' and ''St Pancras Washhouse'' * Elected an associate of the

Royal Society of Painter-Etchers and Engravers The Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers (RE), known until 1991 as the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers and Engravers, is a leading art institution based in London, England. The Royal Society of Painter-Etchers, as it was originally styled, was ...

in 1925 and a

fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

in 1934. * Elected associate member of the

Royal Cambrian Academy The Royal Cambrian Academy of Art (RCA) is a centre of excellence for art in Wales. Its main gallery is located in Conwy and it has over a hundred members. image:Plas Mawr.jpg, 240px, Plas Mawr, Conwy Early history During the 19th century there w ...

in 1942 and a full member in 1943. Wedgwood resigned his membership in 1958.

Exhibitions

* Junior Workers' Guild exhibition,

Mansard Gallery Heal's (originally Heal & Son) is a British furniture and Home decor retailer, homeware retail company comprising seven stores, selling a range of furniture, lighting and home accessories based in London, England. The business was started in 1 ...

, London, 1925 *

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...

: "International Exhibition of Contemporary Prints: A Century of Progress" 1 June to 1 November 1934: ''Outside the Walls'' engraving by Geoffrey Wedgwood exhibited (no. 136) *

Bluecoat Chambers Built in 1716–17 as a charity school, Bluecoat Chambers in School Lane is the oldest surviving building in central Liverpool, England. Following the Liverpool Blue Coat School's move to another site in 1906, the building was rented from 1907 ...

, School Lane, Liverpool, 1932: "Prints and Drawings by Geoffrey Heath Wedgwood" * Sandon Music Room,

, School Lane, Liverpool, 1944: "Pictures by Four Artists: N. Martin Bell; Edgar Grosvenor; Charles W. Sharpe; Geoffrey H. Wedgwood" *

, School Lane, Liverpool, 1946: "Exhibition of Paintings, Drawings and Prints by Martin Bell, Edgar Grosvenor, Charles W. Sharpe, William L. Stevenson and Geoffrey Heath Wedgwood"
Contemporary British Prints and Drawings from the Wakefield Collection

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lang ...

touring exhibition, 1947–1950. An exhibition of prints and drawings from the Wakefield Collection selected by

James Laver James Laver, CBE, FRSA (14 March 1899 – 3 June 1975) was an English author, critic, art historian, and museum curator who acted as Keeper of Prints, Drawings and Paintings for the Victoria and Albert Museum between 1938 and 1959. He was also ...

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

(for example ''The Borghese Gardens, Rome'', exhibited in the summer of 1929) *

New English Art Club The New English Art Club (NEAC) is a society for contemporary artists that was founded in London, England, in 1886 as an alternative venue to the Royal Academy. The NEAC holds an annual exhibition of paintings and drawings at the Mall Galleries ...

Fine Art Society The Fine Art Society is a gallery based in both London and in Edinburgh's New Town (originally Bourne Fine Art, established 1978). The New Bond Street, London gallery closed its doors in August 2018 after being occupied by The Fine Art Society ...

, New Bond Street, London *

Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History The Walker Art Gallery's collection dates from 1819 ...

, Liverpool: "Geoffrey Heath Wedgwood", 2 February – 4 March 1972

Works in public collections

* Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago:
Old Aldgate
', n.d. *

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

, London
Porta Capriana, Naples, 1931
(image not shown online) *

Collection:
St Peter's, Genoa
', line engraving, 1927, accession no. P2479 * Davison Art Center,

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...

, Middletown, CT:
Old Aldgate
', drypoint, 1924, accession no. 1937.D1.41 *

Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum The Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum is an art museum located on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis, within the university's Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts. Founded in 1881 as the St. Louis School and Museum of Fine Arts, i ...

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...

:
S.S. Giovanni e Paolo, Rome
', 1926, accession no. WU 3719 *

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF), comprising the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park, is the largest public arts institution in the city of San Francisco. FAMSF's combined attendance was 1,1 ...

Works by Geoffrey Heath Wedgwood
*

Minneapolis Institute of Art The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) is an arts museum located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Home to more than 90,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia is one of the List of largest art museums, largest ar ...

, Minneapolis: ''Pincian Gardens, Rome'', 1930 *

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), is an art museum located in the Houston Museum District of Houston, Texas. The permanent collection of the museum spans more than 5,000 years of history with nearly 80,000 works from six continents. Follo ...

''Borghese Gardens, Rome'', 1928, and ''The Fishmarket, Naples'', 1929
(both etching and drypoint) *

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

, Melbourne
''The fishmarket, Naples''
1929, drypoint
''Street scene''
1931, drypoint; * University Art Gallery, Pittsburgh: ''The Capitol, Rome'', accession no. 72.1.16 *

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

: several itemsUniversity of Liverpool (1977). *

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

:
St Peter's, Genoa
', accession no. E.859-1959