Enid Dorothy Crystal Marx was born in London on 20th October 1902. She first went to school in Hampstead, then at the age of 12 she boarded at Roedean in West Sussex where she benefited from an exc…
Yesterday was my last day in London and as ever when leaving or arriving in London Kings Cross, it is a great opportunity to visit 'The House of Illustration', this tiny gem of a gallery never disappoints. Currently they have an exhibition of Enid Marx (1902-1998) a textile designer, printmaker and illustrator. Famous for her mid century design, her work on London underground upholstery fabrics and the stamps for Queen Elizabeth II's coronation stamps. However for my first post on Enid's life and work I am going to focus on her love of cats and her woodcuts, as I found the woodcut below particularly striking, you can see in the foliage and other elements of this print, Enid's skills at creating pattern as well as her subtle use of contrasting colours. Above: 'Tiger Tiger' Linocut, printed in colour, published by Curwen Press, 1958 Enid loved cats and the 'Two Cats' print below is based on her own cats 'Sam and Arry', these cats were also to be immortalised in one of her children's books. Woodcut was the perfect medium for Enid and for textile design with the colour separation it requires. It was this technique which really defined the aesthetic of mid century design in Britain.
Furnishing fabric 'Wangle' of dyed cotton, designed by Enid Marx, England, ca. 1935
Enid Dorothy Crystal Marx was born in London on 20th October 1902. She first went to school in Hampstead, then at the age of 12 she boarded at Roedean in West Sussex where she benefited from an exc…
Book pattern papers and covers were a speciality of the English designer Enid Marx RDI (1902 - 1998) although it was not the only string to her bow. Marx, a distant cousin of the Karl, was a sought after designer and artist and she was commissioned in the 1930s by London Transport to design several of the moquette seating fabric for passenger seats. These covers, worked up from both line block designs and wood engraved patterns were for Chatto & Windus's Zodiac Books - a sort of 'Penguin Book' series they published and date from c1949.
'The Little White Bear' published in 1945 by Enid Marx reminds me of Tolkien's 'Father Christmas Letters', with its wonderful pictures of a friendly polar bear. Ivan the polar bear accidentally jumps on a boat of stranded soldiers, and becomes their lucky charm helping to get them to safety.
The iconic fabric designs by Enid Marx for London Transport are instantly recongnisable. We pay tribute to Enid Marx, legendary pattern designer.
A rare print from a set of six linocuts originally produced by Enid Marx between 1936 – 1970. Printed on thin ‘Japon’ paper, these five colour linocuts with red accents were produced as a box-set portfolio edition by the Judd Street Gallery, London in 1989. This print entitled Feline Phantasy is yet another example of […] Read more →
Today marks what would have been Enid Marx's 115th birthday. To celebrate the birth of this remarkable textile designer, we've dug into our archives and pulled out an excerpt of Simon Marks' insightful article tracing her steps towards her legacy... The British designer Enid Marx (1902-1998) may not be a household name
Enid Dorothy Crystal Marx was born in London on 20th October 1902. She first went to school in Hampstead, then at the age of 12 she boarded at Roedean in West Sussex where she benefited from an exc…
The iconic fabric designs by Enid Marx for London Transport are instantly recongnisable. We pay tribute to Enid Marx, legendary pattern designer.
'The Little White Bear' published in 1945 by Enid Marx reminds me of Tolkien's 'Father Christmas Letters', with its wonderful pictures of a friendly polar bear. Ivan the polar bear accidentally jumps on a boat of stranded soldiers, and becomes their lucky charm helping to get them to safety.
Enid Marx was a contemporary of Ravilious and Bawden at The Royal College, a part of Nash's talented generation who were, and continue to be, so influential. Marx has never quite caught the popular imagination in the way that her male contemporaries have done so. To date there has never been a major
Enid Dorothy Crystal Marx was born in London on 20th October 1902. She first went to school in Hampstead, then at the age of 12 she boarded at Roedean in West Sussex where she benefited from an exc…
Collage by A Bermejo Green Tiger Illustrated ABC by Jill Casey Alphabet O by Jan Brett Linocut ...
It was wonderful to see examples of Enid Marx's children's books at House of Illustration. A charming limited blue palette book was 'Nelson Kite of The Kings Army'. This book was published in 1942. An earlier book with similar style, colour and subject by Enid is 'Bulgy the Barrage Balloon' published in 1941.
Elizabeth Finney heads to the House of Illustration in King’s Cross to speak to curator Olivia Ahmad about how illustrator Enid Marx changed the face of British design in the 20th century “I fear my…
Enid Marx isn’t a household name, but her work with pattern has infiltrated our public consciousness. Her designs for the “moquette” patterns on seating in trains and buses immediately evoke the mid-century sophistication that survived on public transport for decades and is now much in need of resurrection. Marx’s Shield pattern should be instantly revived by TfL.
Today marks what would have been Enid Marx's 115th birthday. To celebrate the birth of this remarkable textile designer, we've dug into our archives and pulled out an excerpt of Simon Marks' insightful article tracing her steps towards her legacy... The British designer Enid Marx (1902-1998) may not be a household name
Book end-papers, above designed by Enid Marx, below designed by Harry Carter, printed from woodblocks, given by the Curwen Press
Enid Dorothy Crystal Marx was born in London on 20th October 1902. She first went to school in Hampstead, then at the age of 12 she boarded at Roedean in West Sussex where she benefited from an exc…
The iconic fabric designs by Enid Marx for London Transport are instantly recongnisable. We pay tribute to Enid Marx, legendary pattern designer.
Key to Warner & Sons success over almost an entire century of business was their passion for contemporary design whilst maintaining the more traditional arm of their business. Warner & Sons would frequently purchase work from emerging and influential designers to produce or inspire new collections. An early instigator of this was Frank Warner who
Enid Marx, Minnie McLeish and Lucienne Day – a generation of revolutionary print creators
'The Little White Bear' published in 1945 by Enid Marx reminds me of Tolkien's 'Father Christmas Letters', with its wonderful pictures of a friendly polar bear. Ivan the polar bear accidentally jumps on a boat of stranded soldiers, and becomes their lucky charm helping to get them to safety.
Lithograph from wood engraving. Designed by Enid Marx, printed by the Curwen Press. Patterned paper, ca. 1925
Enid Dorothy Crystal Marx was born in London on 20th October 1902. She first went to school in Hampstead, then at the age of 12 she boarded at Roedean in West Sussex where she benefited from an exc…
The iconic fabric designs by Enid Marx for London Transport are instantly recongnisable. We pay tribute to Enid Marx, legendary pattern designer.
As part of the Celebrating Britain’s Transport Textile project, London Transport Museum curator Georgia Morley has researched the hard-wearing and distinctively patterned fabrics that have covered Britain’s transport seating since the 1920s
English Popular Art by Margaret Lambert & Enid Marx hits the £1 shelf in my shop. B. T. Batsford, 1951, Hardback in dust wrapper. Illustrated by way of: Colour Plates [8]; Black & White Pla…
Enid Marx wood engraving from the original block. 1936. To illustrate an article on the artist by Christian Barman and published in Signature. Text to reverse-no show through. 481 copies only of the issue were sold, most of which will have now disappeared given the ephemeral nature of such magazines. Photos 2 and 3 are for information and do not form part of the sale. Image size c9x6ins.. Unmounted. Marx studied at the Central School of Arts and Crafts for a year before moving to the painting school at the Royal College of Art (RCA) in 1922. Her classmates there included Edward Bawden, Eric Ravilious, Barbara Hepworth, and Barnett Freedman. As a student, Marx was influenced by Paul Nash, then a tutor at the RCA, who introduced her to publishers and encouraged her avant-garde leanings. Retrospective exhibitions of Marx's work have taken place at the Pallant House Gallery in Chichester during 2012 and in London from May to September 2018 at the House of Illustration. Our usual packaging: Beautifully presented in cello bag backed by acid-free card. Will be also sent in cardboard reinforced DO NOT BEND envelope. Where possible, we also include a sheet with information about the print.
First edition of Geoffrey Household's 1939 thriller Rogue Male
