Jocelyn Herbert and David Storey, from the Jocelyn Herbert archive at the National Theatre
12.03.2018 to 16.03.2018
The Cookhouse Gallery, Chelsea College of Arts, London
Curated by MA Curating and Collections 2017-18
This exhibition provides insights into the professional and personal relationship between renowned theatre designer, Jocelyn Herbert (1917-2003), and writer and artist David Storey (1933-2017). The show is curated by MA Curating and Collections at Chelsea College of Arts and is the fourth in a series of collaborations with the Jocelyn Herbert Archive at the National Theatre.
Jocelyn Herbert designed sets and costumes for seven David Storey plays: Home (1970) at The Royal Court Theatre; The Changing Room (1971) at The Royal Court Theatre; Cromwell (1973) at The Royal Court Theatre; Life Class (1974) at The Royal Court Theatre: Early Days (1980) at Brighton Theatre Royal and The Cottesloe at the National Theatre; The March on Russia (1989) at the Lyttelton Theatre at The National Theatre; Stages (1992) at the Cottesloe Theatre at The National Theatre. This exhibition focusses on material relating to five plays: Home, The Changing Room, Early Days, The March on Russia and Stages.
The exhibition is composed of four main themes: set design; costume design; Jocelyn Herbert’s aesthetic approach and work ethic and correspondence from friends and admirers. The show includes a wide range of materials loaned from the Jocelyn Herbert Archive at the National Theatre including photographs, sketches, drawings, models, notebooks, diaries and postcards. The curators have also collaborated with the British Library to include edited oral history audio recordings from the National Life Stories archive, enabling the audience to hear extracts from Richard Eyre’s 2010 Jocelyn Herbert Lecture, and Cathy Courtney’s interviews with Jocelyn Herbert and David Storey, and experience the designer and writer in their own words.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
The curators would like to thank Cathy Courtney and Eileen Hogan for introducing us to the National Theatre Archive, and for supporting this curatorial project. Erin Lee, Anastasios Tzitzikos and Malcolm Mathieson from the National Theatre Archive for your kind assistance in making the exhibition and publication a success. Dave Govier, Charlie Morgan and Mary Stewart from the Oral History/National Life Stories at the British Library. Photographs have been reproduced with the kind permission of John Haynes. All photographs remain in © of John Haynes. We would like to kindly thank the Estate of David Storey and the Estate of Jocelyn Herbert. Lastly, to Donald Smith and Cherie Silver for your guidance in curating the exhibition.
WITH SUPPORT BY:
UAL Chelsea College of Arts
National Life Stories
National Theatre Archive
Image credits: Courtesy of CHELSEA Space
