Description
This collection is
comprised of hand written and typed letters, postcards, and a few pieces of inserted
works/proofs sent from the engraver John Buckland Wright to Christopher Sanford, the owner
of the Golden Cockerel Press.
Background
John Buckland Wright (1897-1954) was an eminent 20th century book illustrator, printmaker
and engraver known for producing engraved works for numerous private presses. Born in New
Zealand where he spent most of his childhood, he and his mother later moved to England in
1908. Though he briefly studied history in college and considered becoming an architect, he
ultimately became a self-taught wood engraver. In the mid-1920s, John Buckland Wright moved
to Brussels to experience its vibrant artist community, joining groups such as the Gravure
Originale Belge and the Xylographes Belges. While at Brussels, he met the Scottish-Canadian
musician Mary Bell Anderson whom he later married. After 1929, he went to Paris and spent
the next decade working at the avant-garde printmaking shop Atelier 17 with its founder
Stanley William Hayter, becoming its director in 1936. During this time, he collaborated
with a number of illustrious artists including Matisse, Chagall, Picasso, Miró, and Dali.
Returning to London in 1939 with the outbreak of WWII, he continued to be active in the
printmaking and engraving scene during the war. In his later years, he started to teach
printmaking at the Camberwell School of Art and the Slade School of art up until his
unexpected death in 1954.
Restrictions
Copyright has not been assigned to the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, UCLA. All
requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to
the Clark Librarian. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the William Andrews
Clark Memorial Library, UCLA as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to
include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.