Ground force: Simon Phipps puts British post-war public art in the frame

Tracey Emin once said that art is for everyone. The sentiment still resonates with British fashion designer Margaret Howell, who feels passionately about public sculpture. ‘It’s a gift to us all,’ she says. ‘It’s a pleasure to see art become part of a location, it really can enrich people’s lives.’
Last year, Howell took a trip to London's Courtauld Gallery to see an exhibition called ‘Out There: Our Post-War Public Art’. The show charted the conception and conservation of public artworks created in England between 1945 and 1985, and featured sculptures by the likes of Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore and Elisabeth Frink. ‘It was just so impressive,’ she recalls. ‘That was a brilliant era, when modern pieces were more commonly commissioned for communal spaces.’
‘Out There’ inspired the concept behind Howell’s new exhibition, ‘British Post-War Public Art’, which is now on display at her brand’s Wigmore Street store. ‘I had seen some fantastic photographs that Simon Phipps had taken of British sculptures,’ she explains. ‘So, we asked him to document even more, especially for us.’ Above Ercol furnishings and small ceramic displays hang 18 of Phipps’ bold, texture-rich photographs of some of Britain’s most renowned public works, which remain unspoiled and in their original settings. ‘It’s a celebration of these wonderful sculptures as they are now,’ she affirms.
Apollo Pavilion, Peterlee, by Victor Pasmore.
In one image, Phipps has lensed Richard Serra’s Fulcrum (1987) from the ground upwards, in order to emphasise the scale of the imposing, wigwam-like structure that’s nestled between skyscrapers in London’s Broadgate. ‘That’s one of my favourite shots, Serra’s sculpture looks so powerful,’ notes Howell. Another photograph depicts Lynn Chadwick’s The Watchers (1969–70) in the leafy grounds of Roehampton University. The set of three bronzes was famously stolen in 2006, before being found and re-installed in its original location last year. ‘It’s such a shame when public sculptures are vandalised, it changes the landscape completely,’ she says. ‘I believe that all sculptures, no matter how surprising, can grow on you and become familiar.’
Howell also regards Phipps’ portrayal of Barbara Hepworth’s abstract Four-Square (Walk Through) (1966) at Churchill College, Cambridge as a focal point. The striking photograph, together with 11 other images from the show, also form the label’s 2018 calendar of the same name. ‘A calendar is great because it allows people to incorporate these works into their daily lives in a more causal way,’ she says. ‘Because art really is for everybody.’
Left, The Watchers, Roehampton University, by Lynn Chadwick. Right, Oscillation, Cambridge, by Kenneth Martin.
Left, 2MS Series No.1, Milton Keynes, by Bernard Schottlander. Right, Four-Square (Walk Through), Churchill College, Cambridge, by Barbara Hepworth.
Installation view of 'British Post-War Public Art’ at Margaret Howell's Wigmore Street store
Left, Fulcrum, Broadgate, London, by Richard Serra. Right, Minutemen, Salford, by William Mitchell.
Declaration, Beaumanor Hall, Leicestershire, by Phillip King
Left, Pimlico Cooling Tower, London, by Eduardo Paolozzi. Right, Two-Piece Reclining Figure No. 3, Brandon Estate, London, by Henry Moore.
INFORMATION
‘British Post-War Public Art’ is on view until 22 October. For more information, visit the Magaret Howell website
ADDRESS
34 Wigmore Street
London
WIU 2RS
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
Venerable British car-maker AC goes OTT with the high-output, low-slung AC GT SuperSport
Pitched at all-American fans of the original AC Cobra, the GT SuperSport is a fearsome two-seat roadster with more muscle than ever before
-
The dynamic young gallerists reinvigorating America's art scene
'Hugging has replaced air kissing' in this new wave of galleries with craft and community at their core
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the week
While a few of our editors were in Europe for various showcases and launches, others stayed local, uncovering new cuisines, eccentric exhibitions and glorious gardens this side of the Channel
-
Meet the New York-based artists destabilising the boundaries of society
A new show in London presents seven young New York-based artists who are pushing against the borders between refined aesthetics and primal materiality
-
Leila Bartell’s cloudscapes are breezily distorted, a response to an evermore digital world
‘Memory Fields’ is the London-based artist’s solo exhibition at Tristan Hoare Gallery (until 25 July 2025)
-
A bespoke 40m mixed-media dragon is the centrepiece of Glastonbury’s new chill-out area
New for 2025 is Dragon's Tail – a space to offer some calm within Glastonbury’s late-night area with artwork by Edgar Phillips at its heart
-
Emerging artist Kasia Wozniak’s traditional photography techniques make for ethereal images
Wozniak’s photographs, taken with a 19th-century Gandolfi camera, are currently on show at Incubator, London
-
Vincent Van Gogh and Anselm Kiefer are in rich and intimate dialogue at the Royal Academy of Arts
German artist Anselm Kiefer has paid tribute to Van Gogh throughout his career. When their work is viewed together, a rich relationship is revealed
-
Alice Adams, Louise Bourgeois, and Eva Hesse delve into art’s ‘uckiness’ at The Courtauld
New exhibition ‘Abstract Erotic’ (until 14 September 2025) sees artists experiment with the grotesque
-
What is recycling good for, asks Mika Rottenberg at Hauser & Wirth Menorca
US-based artist Mika Rottenberg rethinks the possibilities of rubbish in a colourful exhibition, spanning films, drawings and eerily anthropomorphic lamps
-
Get lost in Megan Rooney’s abstract, emotional paintings
The artist finds worlds in yellow and blue at Thaddaeus Ropac London