Bernard Nevill

FRSA The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

FCSD (24 September 1930 – 30 January 2019) was a British designer and academic, formerly a professor at

Saint Martin's School of Art Saint Martin's School of Art was an art school, art college in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1854, initially under the aegis of the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields. Saint Martin's beca ...

and design director for Liberty of London.

Career

Nevill joined Liberty's in 1965, and "revitalised their traditional prints, introducing Art Deco-style patterns and Islamic themes". He rose to design director, and was succeeded by Susan Collier.

Personal life

Nevill lived at West House, a

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

house at 35

Glebe Place Glebe Place is a street in Chelsea, London. It runs roughly north to south from King's Road to the crossroads with Upper Cheyne Row, where it becomes Cheyne Row, leading down to Cheyne Walk and the River Thames. It also has a junction with Br ...

, Chelsea, London, which he bought in 1976 for about £67,000, until he sold it in 2011 for £20 million. It was built in 1868–1869 by the architect

Philip Webb Philip Speakman Webb (12 January 1831 – 17 April 1915) was a British architect and designer sometimes called the Father of Arts and Crafts Architecture. His use of vernacular architecture demonstrated his commitment to "the art of common ...

, on behalf of the artist

George Price Boyce George Price Boyce (24 September 1826 – 9 February 1897) was a British watercolour painter of landscapes and vernacular architecture in the Pre-Raphaelite style. He was a patron and friend of Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Life Boyce was born in ...

, who lived there from 1870 until his death in 1897. Some of his paintings, furniture and furnishings, which appeared in the 1987 film ''

Withnail and I ''Withnail and I'' is a 1987 British black comedy film written and directed by Bruce Robinson. Loosely based on Robinson's life in London in the late 1960s, the plot follows two unemployed actors, Withnail and "I" (portrayed by Richard E. Gra ...

'' and 1998 film '' B. Monkey'' were auctioned by Christie's in 2011, and were expected to realise about £200,000. The sale total was actually £471,400. More property belonging to Nevill, including items that appeared in ''

'' such as Uncle Monty's sofa, was auctioned by Bellmans Auctioneers in February 2022, with the proceeds going to charity. Nevill died in London at the age of 88 on 30 January 2019 after a long period of illness.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nevill, Bernard 1930 births 2019 deaths Academics of Saint Martin's School of Art British textile designers Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts