Edward Bawden

Edward Bawden 1903 - 1989

The Bawden Archive

The Cecil Higgins Gallery holds a major archive of the work of Edward Bawden comprising works from all periods of his career. This was made possible by Edward Bawden’s generous gift to the gallery of the contents of his studio. In a letter to the Gallery’s curator he wrote, “My own wish, would be for all the jigsaw pieces of my life’s work to be together, not scattered willy-nilly to any institution that happened to want this bit or that … I must say I would feel immensely happy if I could be allowed to leave my remains to Bedford.”

 Of this archive, the earliest examples are illustrations for The Drawing Pin, published in 1922 by the students of Cambridge & County Arts and Crafts. Work from the 1920’s and 1930’s include typographic and advertising work for amongst others The Curwen Press and BP.

There is also a substantial body of designs for textiles and ceramics including pieces for the Orient Line, 1952 and the Newland Shipping Company Ltd, 1953. More recent works include linocuts for Nine London Monuments, 1966 and Six London Markets, 1967.

The Gallery also has on permanent display the tapestry Bunyan’s Dream, comprising  eighty individual panels, which brought together show John Bunyan in prison awakening from his dream on which the story of the Pilgrim’s Progress is based. The work was designed by Bawden with the tapestries made by Bedfordshire Music and Arts Club.