Ian Tyson (1933 - 2021)
British painter, sculptor, printmaker and book artist.
Born in Wallasey, Cheshire, England. He studied at Birkenhead School of Art and Royal Academy of Arts in London.
Tyson’s work is associated with the British Abstract and Constructivist movements, especially his work from the late 60s onwards, exploring relationships in colour and geometry, and often employing the use of a grid structure.
Tyson’s meticulous attention to colour and his innovations with form established him as one of the finest British printmaker’s of the late twentieth century.
His first solo show was at the Ashgate gallery in Farnham in 1961, and in 1964 he was awarded first prize at the Welsh Arts Council St David’s exhibition.
Over his long career, Tyson has shown in 32 solo and 40 group exhibitions across Europe and North America.
In 1979-80 Tyson was awarded a Brinkley Fellowship at Norwich School of Art.
His work can be found in over 36 public collections, notably Tate, British Library, V&A, University of California, University of Dallas, Bibliotheque Nationale (Paris) amongst others.
He is well known for his collaboration with Ron King’s Circle Press and publishing the first edition of Tom Phillip’s seminal work ‘A Humument’ under his imprint Tetrad press, founded in 1969.
He collaborated with avant garde poets including Jackson Mac Low, Roy Fisher, Larry Eigner and Jerome Rothenberg. Exploring visual interpretations of text and advanced typesetting.Tyson was also a noted lecturer and educator teaching at the Royal College of Art, St Martin’s School of Art, Wimbledon School of Art, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of California at San Diego.
After moving to Northern Provence, France in the early 2000s alongside his work in printmaking and artist books, he explored sculpture to a much greater degree, creating large scale steel works, housed in many private collections.