Geoffrey Arthur Tibble (27 February 1909 – 12 December 1952) was an English artist. He was prominent in the

Objective Abstraction Objective abstraction was a British art group or movement c. 1933–1936, taking its name from the "Objective Abstractions" exhibition of 1934. It is a misnomer in the sense that a minority of the artists in the exhibition were at that time engaged ...

movement.

Early life

Geoffrey Arthur Tibble was born in

Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, England, and the county town of Berkshire. It is the United Kingdom's largest town, with a combined population of 355,596. Most of Reading built-up area, its built-up area lies within the Borough ...

, England on 27 February 1909, as the younger child to Frederick Tibble (1874–1949) and his wife, Eva (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Fereday; 1878–1951). He had an elder brother, Leonard Frederick "John" Tibble (1905–1978). Tibble was educated at

Reading University The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...

School of Art. In 1927, at the age of 18, he entered the

Slade School of Fine Art The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...

, under

Henry Tonks Henry Tonks, Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, FRCS (9 April 1862 – 8 January 1937) was a British surgeon and later draughtsman and painter of figure subjects, chiefly interiors, and a Caricature, caricaturist. He became an influentia ...

, where he was a contemporary of

William Coldstream Sir William Menzies Coldstream, CBE (28 February 1908 – 18 February 1987) was an English realist painter and a long-standing art teacher. Biography Coldstream was born at Belford, Northumberland, in northern England, the second son of co ...

Career

Tibble was a significant figure in the short-lived

movement. In 1934, he exhibited abstract works at the Exhibition of Objective Abstractions at the Zwemmer Gallery,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

(works described as "vortices in pigment, suggesting rather than representing something in nature"). He later destroyed or overpainted most of the works from this abstract period. After briefly experimenting with

surrealism Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

, by 1937, Tibble had returned to

figurative art Figurative art, sometimes written as figurativism, describes artwork (particularly paintings and sculptures) that is clearly derived from real object sources and so is, by definition, representational. The term is often in contrast to abstract a ...

, moving toward the

Euston Road School The Euston Road School is a term applied to a group of English painters, active either as staff or students at the School of Drawing and Painting in London between 1937 and 1939. The School opened in October 1937 at premises in Fitzroy Street, Lo ...

of urban realism, which was founded by

. In 1944, he became a member of the

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 ...

. He also exhibited with

The London Group The London Group is a society based in London, England, created to offer additional exhibiting opportunities to artists besides the Royal Academy of Arts. Formed in 1913, it is one of the oldest artist-led organisations in the world. It was form ...

, after his

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer military, volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Few nations, such ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Tibble had his first

solo exhibition A solo show or solo exhibition is an art exhibition, exhibition of the work of only one artist. Rather than a group of artists who collaborate to form an exhibition. The artwork may be paintings, drawings, etchings, collage, sculpture, or photogr ...

at Tooth's Gallery in 1946, showing 25 paintings, all interiors with figures, a format that became his signature style and developed his wider reputation. These were critically acclaimed for their "remarkable assurance, the certainty of aim and economy of means" and their resemblance to the work of

Degas Edgar Degas (, ; born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, ; 19 July 183427 September 1917) was a French people, French Impressionism, Impressionist artist famous for his pastel drawings and oil paintings. Degas also produced bronze sculptures, Print ...

. Tibble subsequently exhibited at leading London galleries, including the

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

and

Lefevre Lefebvre (; commonly in English-speaking countries, as well as or ) is a common northern French surname. Alternative forms include ''Lefebvre'', ''le Febvre'', ''Le Febvre'', ''Lefèbvre'', ''le Fèbvre'', ''Le Fèbvre'', as well as the common var ...

galleries.

Critical reception

A review of a retrospective exhibition said, "His work—dingy but packed with period atmosphere—looks back towards the intimate interiors of Vuillard, and forward to the domestic squalor of the Kitchen Sink School".

Personal life

Tibble married Marjorie Alice Serene Edwards in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

in July 1934. They had two daughters together; Paula C Barnett (

Tibble; born 1938) and Georgina M Eddy (née Tibble; born 1946).

Death

Tibble died suddenly at Frogmore Bungalow, his home in

Amersham Amersham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England, in the Chiltern Hills, northwest of central London, south-east of Aylesbury and north-east of High Wycombe. Amersham is part of the London commuter belt. There ar ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

, on 12 December 1952. He was 43. His

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...

service was held at St. Mary's Church,

Beaconsfield Beaconsfield ( ) is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England, northwest of central London and southeast of Aylesbury. Three other towns are within : Gerrards Cross, Amersham and High Wycombe. The ...

on 16 December 1952. He was buried at Beaconsfield Cemetery. Tibble's

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...

married Christopher F Hobbs in Amersham in July 1955. She died in Surrey South Western on 29 June 1968, at the age of 60, following a

road accident A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. Tr ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tibble, Geoffrey 1909 births 1952 deaths 20th-century English male artists 20th-century English painters English artists English male artists English male painters English painters