(1897 - 1982)
Born in Johannesburg, Edward Wolfe arrived in London in 1916, having previously acted as a child and worked for a jeweller. On a scholarship in London he studied at the Regent Street Polytechnic School of Art, and then the Slade School of Art. There he met the artist, Nina Hamnett who introduced him to artist and critic, Roger Fry. Fry invited Wolfe to join the Omega Workshop, a commercial unit which designed furniture, objects and decorative furnishings made by artists and designers, most notably, Duncan Grant and Vanessa Bell. Wolfe first exhibited with the Omega Workshop in 1918, followed by a show with the London Group in 1919.
Wolfe returned to South Africa in 1919–20, but settled in London in 1921. He travelled extensively in Europe, North Africa and Mexico, meeting leading figures such as novelist, Arnold Bennett; Russian avant-garde artist, Natalia Goncharova; and writer, Aldous Huxley. He acted as a BBC censor in the Second World War after which he continued to exhibit his work widely around the world until his death in 1982. Retrospectives were held in London (1967 and 1997) and Wolfe’s works are represented in many museum collections including the Tate in London.
