King’s Parade, Cambridge

Edwin La Dell (1914 - 1970)

Lithograph

1959

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Image of King’s Parade, Cambridge
  • About the work
    Location
    Country: Brunei
    City: Bandar Seri Begawan
    Place: British High Commission
    This view of King's Parade, Cambridge by Edwin La Dell is part of his Oxford and Cambridge Series, commissioned by St George's Gallery, London in the late 1950s. A busy thoroughfare with students and bicycles, the foreground of the scene is cast in deep shadow from King's College Chapel to the left. The College lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city.

    The illustrative nature of this print echoes the style of La Dell’s former decorative prints that he was commissioned to make by Lyons for their tea shops nationwide, and for the Guinness print series he produced to enhance canteens, bars and pubs.

    Edwin La Dell, painter and lithographer, was born in Rotherham, Yorkshire. From 1930–38 he studied at Sheffield College of Art and at the Royal College of Art.  An Official War Artist during the Second World War, he worked on civil and military camouflage, and from 1946–49 he produced war paintings, lithographs and murals for the Central Office of Information. After the War he continued making art and teaching at the Royal College of Art where he became Head of Printmaking. His post-war prints were enormously influential and his works are held in the Tate Collection and the Victoria & Albert Museum.

  • About the artist
    Born in Rotherham, Edwin La Dell won scholarships to Sheffield School of Art and the Royal College of Art (RCA), where he studied under John Nash and Percy Horton. Often using flat colour overlays, his work conveyed a strong sense of design as well as an interest in atmospheric effects. During the Second World War, he joined the Civil Defence Camouflage Establishment in Leamington Spa, working as a camouflage designer. He became involved with the Artists International Association and also submitted work to the War Artists Advisory Committee. In 1943, he was sent on active service, first in Belgium and then on the German Front. From 1946 to 1949, he produced paintings, lithographs and murals for the Central Office of Information. After the War, he continued making art and was employed as a teacher, initially working as a tutor at the RCA in 1948 before becoming Head of the Printmaking. In this role, his impact on post-war printmaking and future generations of printmakers was enormously influential. His works are represented in several public collections including Tate and the Victoria & Albert Museum.
  • Explore
    Places
    England, Cambridge: King's Parade, Cambridge: King's College, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
    Subjects
    bicycle, topography, townscape/cityscape, tree, man, woman, college, lawn, street, pavement, university, tower
    Materials & Techniques
    lithograph
  • Details
    Artist
    Edwin La Dell (1914 - 1970)
    Title
    King’s Parade, Cambridge
    Portfolio Title
    The Oxford and Cambridge Eight
    Edition
    18/50
    Date
    1959
    Medium
    Lithograph
    Dimensions
    height: 37.50 cm, width: 64.50 cm
    Acquisition
    Purchased from St.George's Gallery, May 1960
    Inscription
    below image: 18/50 / King's Parade / Edwin La Dell
    GAC number
    5125