Denis Mitchell (sculptor)

Denis Mitchell
Born(1912-06-30)June 30, 1912
Wealdstone, Middlesex
DiedMarch 24, 1993(1993-03-24) (aged 80)
Newlyn, Cornwall
Known forSculpture
Websitedenismitchell.co.uk

Denis Adeane Mitchell (30 June 1912 – 23 March 1993)[1] was an English abstract sculptor who worked mainly in bronze and wood. A prominent member of the St Ives group of artists,[2] he worked as an assistant to Barbara Hepworth for many years.[3] His work is in the collection of the Tate St Ives,[4] the Art Gallery of New South Wales,[5] the Fitzwilliam Museum,[6] and the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.[7]

Early life

Mitchell was born in Wealdstone, Middlesex on 30 June 1912.[8] His father was a music hall impresario.[9] In 1913, his parents separated and he moved with his mother and older brother Endell to live with an uncle in Swansea.[9] He grew up in Mumbles and attended the local grammar school.[8]

Mitchell's obituary in The Daily Telegraph said he had "a happy but unremarkable childhood".[9] He left school at 16 and worked in various jobs in Swansea, including at an art studio.[9] During this time, he met Dylan Thomas while drinking in the Mermaid pub and the two became friends.[9]

Mitchell briefly enrolled at Swansea Art College in 1930, leaving after a few months to move to Cornwall.[9] The art evening classes he took there were to be the only formal art training he ever had.[8][10]

Move to Cornwall and Second World War

In 1930, Mitchell moved to Cornwall with his brother Endell to help renovate his aunt's derelict cottage at Barnoon, St Ives.[9][11] The pair ended up living there, establishing a market garden and taking odd jobs.[9] Denis became interested in the art scene in St Ives, attending local studio shows and, by the mid-1930s, creating his own paintings.[9]

During the Second World War, Denis worked as a tin miner at Geevor Mine from 1942 to 1945 as an alternative to conscription into the army.[2][9][11] He was part of the Home Guard, becoming friends with Bernard Leach and Adrian Stokes, both of whom sparked his interest in modern art.[11]

Post-war work

In 1946, Mitchell joined the St Ives Society of Artists.[2] He continued to work on his market garden as well as being a fisherman from 1946 to 1948.[9] In 1949, Leach mentioned Mitchell's name to Barbara Hepworth who was looking for an assistant; after a trial day, she hired Mitchell.[1] Mitchell would work for Hepworth for a decade, until 1959.[12] During his time working for Hepworth, he began to create sculptures, first with wood and later with bronze.[11]

The same year, Mitchell was involved in the founding of the Penwith Society of Arts. This came after a split in the St Ives Society of Artists between progressive and conservative members which had, according to The West Briton, "been threatening for some years".[13] Denis organised the first meeting of the new society at the Castle Inn, where Endell was landlord.[14] Other founding members included Hepworth, Ben Nicholson, Sven Berlin and Wilhelmina Barns-Graham.[13]

In 1953, Mitchell sold his first sculpture, an elm carving called Mother and Child, to the parents of Angela Flowers while they were visiting Hepworth.[15] He was elected chair of the Penwith Society in 1955,[1] holding the position until 1957.[2] He was known for his calm and diplomatic manner in the role and "did much to harmonise the community and encourage younger artists" according to his Independent obituary.[1][2]

Mitchell stopped working for Hepworth in 1959.[10][note 1] He later said in a 1992 interview that he stayed with Hepworth for "far too long really, but there was no work down here and there was no other way for me to make money."[16] Mitchell started to sculpt mainly in bronze and took on Breon O'Casey as an assistant.[2][17] O'Casey would later also become an assistant to Hepworth.[17]

Between 1960 and 1967, Mitchell taught part time at the Redruth School of Art and Penzance Grammar School.[14] He gained greater attention during the 1960s: exhibiting in London, Chicago and New York,[1][14] receiving an award from the Arts Council in 1966,[9] and becoming a full-time sculptor in 1967 after the success of his first London show at the Marjorie Parr Galleries.[8] Needing more space than his studio on Fore Street allowed, Mitchell joined John Wells in moving to a new larger studio in Newlyn at the end of the 1960s.[1][note 2] He received commissions from the Foreign Office and the British Council,[9] including a 1968 commission for bronze sculpture for the University of the Andes in Bogotá, Colombia.[10] From 1973 to 1979, the British Council toured an exhibition including his sculptures in the Middle East and Far East.[1] Mitchell also helped to set up the Newlyn Orion Gallery in the 1970s.[9]

After several mixed shows since 1956 and a major solo exhibition in 1977,[11] Mitchell's first retrospective was held at the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea in 1979.[10] He was particularly pleased with the exhibition and envisaged it as his final show.[1][18]

Personal life

Mitchell married Jane Stevens in 1939 and the couple had three daughters, the first being born in 1940.[1]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ In a 1992 interview with Iain Gale, Mitchell said he worked for Hepworth for eleven years.[16] However, most other sources say he worked for Hepworth for ten years, from 1949 to 1959.[2][8][9][10][11][12]
  2. ^ The Guardian and Sotheby's suggest that the move to Newlyn was in 1967,[2][8] but articles in The Independent and The Daily Telegraph say the two artists moved in 1969.[16][9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Obituary: Denis Mitchell". The Independent. 25 March 1993. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Aldrich-Saunders, Kate (20 August 2019). "Denis Mitchell's Profound Impact on 20th Century Sculpture". Sothebys.com. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  3. ^ "Artists and places: Denis Mitchell and sculptures inspired by Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly". Art UK. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  4. ^ "Denis Mitchell 1912–1993". Tate. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  5. ^ "Cordoba: M.6-1975". Fitzwilliam Museum. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  6. ^ "Zelah No. 2, 1963". Te Papa. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Frank Ruhrmund (25 March 1993). "Obituary: Denis Mitchell". The Guardian. p. 35. Retrieved 6 December 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Obituary: Denis Mitchell". The Daily Telegraph. 27 March 1993. p. 17. Retrieved 6 December 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ a b c d e "Denis Adeane Mitchell 1912-1993". Art UK. Retrieved 6 December 2025.
  10. ^ a b c d e f "Denis MITCHELL". Cornwall Artists Index. Retrieved 6 December 2025.
  11. ^ a b "Three important Modern British artworks gifted to The Hepworth Wakefield". Hepworth Wakefield. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2025.
  12. ^ a b "Art Colony Split: Penwith Society of Arts Formed". The West Briton. 10 February 1949. p. 4. Retrieved 6 December 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ a b c "A Master of Form & Harmony". Lay's Auctioneers. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  14. ^ Angela Flowers; Michael Snow (29 March 1993). "Appreciation: Denis Mitchell - Alchemist up in the Cornish loft". The Guardian. p. 31. Retrieved 6 December 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ a b c Iain Gale (11 August 1992). "Ledy by kindly light". The Independent. p. 13. Retrieved 7 December 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ a b "Obituary: Breon O'Casey". The Daily Telegraph. 2 June 2011. p. 25. Retrieved 8 December 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Denis Mitchell". The Tyler Gallery. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denis_Mitchell_(sculptor)