Specialising in biographic, career-defining monographs of little-known British artists, Vivienne Light here focuses on the totemic work of 77-year old West Country sculptor Peter Thursby.
It is fascinating to see him dabbling in almost every artist’s style of his day from Eric Gill and Henry Moore to William Scott and Peter Lanyon – before these influences make way for his own mature, streamlined, spiky aluminium, bronze and silver constructions. Although much of his recent work still harks back to the slick, upright forms of 1950s design, his reliance on corporate commissions reveals the worrying trend in art that elevates a few artists as all-conquering heroes while sweeping the rest under the carpet to fend for themselves.
Next time you whizz past Thursby’s imposing bronze fountain in the forecourt of the McDonald’s HQ in East Finchley, spare a thought for the talented but overlooked.
