John Piper

Born 1903 – Died 1992

Piper was born in Epsom, Surrey. He studied locally and at the Royal College of Art, where he began to develop as a landscape painter and as a critic. He co-edited, with his second wife Myfanwy Evans, the ultra-modern periodical ‘Axis’ (1935–37). However, he later moved away from abstraction and during his period as an Official War Artist (1940–42) he returned to landscape and architectural painting, becoming associated with the Neo-Romantic movement. Piper had an enduring interest in architecture: he completed ecclesiastical commissions for Eton, Nuffield College, Oxford, and Coventry in the post-war years, and also collaborated on architectural guides to the home counties with the poet John Betjeman. From the early 1950s he toured the continent extensively, painting buildings in France, Rome and Venice. He also occupied a number of important posts in the art world, serving as a Trustee of the Tate Gallery and on the Arts Council panel. He is also known for his theatre sets and stained glass designs.