Lillian Delevoryas

Lillian Delevoryas

Photograph by Numael Pulido 1986
Born 3 January 1932
Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, USA
Occupation Artist and Designer
Nationality American
Ethnicity Greek American
Education Pratt Institute, Cooper Union, New York, USA
Years active 1956 to present
Spouse Robin Amis
Children Nicholas
Website
http://www.lilliandelevoryas.com/

Lillian Grace Delevoryas is an American artist whose career spans six decades. Trained in Fine Art, Calligraphy and Woodblock printing she initially achieved recognition during the 1970s for her pioneering work in Appliqué and Tapestry for both the Fashion and Interior design industries. In the 1980s this recognition led to commissions for commercial applications over a range of consumer products; most notably pottery, textile and paper. Since the 1990s, Delevoryas has returned to painting and continued to exhibit and promote her work. She has lived in the UK since the early 1970s and was married to the writer and poet Robin Amis.

Early Life, education and early career

Delevoryas was born in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, USA to Greek immigrant parents. She studied at the Pratt Institute and the Cooper Union in New York, where she gained her B.A. (Hons) in Fine Art. After graduation she spent some time in Japan, where she studied calligraphy and wood block printing with Toshi Yoshida and Tomi Tokuriki (Tomikichirō Tokuriki)*. She also studied in France before settling in New York. It was here she created her earliest major works – the New York Studio Series – an exploration of structure and of light, both real and reflected. These early works explored naturistic and intimist art combining various influences including Matisse and Picasso, revealing a love of colour and the strong graphic sense which has informed her work ever since.[1]

Fabric applique and tapestry

In the late 1960s, she turned from painting to textile art, and at the suggestion of Kaffe Fassett and Judy Brittain of Vogue (British magazine) she came to London, where she was commissioned to design tapestries for private homes and costumes for celebrities and pop stars.[2][3] Her work in fabric appliqué was featured widely, including in Vogue.[4]

In 1972, she married the writer Robin Amis. The wedding dress she created was featured in Vogue magazine and latterly exhibited in the 2014 "Here Comes the Brides" Exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum.[5] It is now in the Museum's permanent collection as an example of the spirit of the times. She and her husband moved to the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, where they founded the Weatherall Workshops, creating tapestry and needlepoint pieces.[6] The work produced from their designs and stitched into tapestries won many awards and were exhibited widely, including: the V & A Queens Jubilee exhibition, the Royal College of Art and ‘Threads of History’ at The Courtauld Institute of Art.[7][8]

Watercolour and design

Her time at Weatherall marked the beginning of her love affair with the English garden, whose profusion of colour reinforced her already strong love of pattern. The floral watercolours produced during this period quickly translated into designs.[9] This design work which covered a variety of applications were featured by Divertimenti, Burleigh Pottery and Habitat (retailer): she also created fabric designs for Designers Guild[10] and stationary products for Elgin Court.

Later years

In the 90s, she returned to her native Massachusetts, and during that period produced a series of landscapes inspired by the marshlands and tidal estuaries of the coastline.

From the mid-90s onwards she was increasingly influenced by the landscape and religious art of Greece as a result of her husband’s frequent visits to Mount Athos. She was particularly interested in icons of the Eastern Church and subsequently devoted herself to learning the techniques of iconography.[11] This work eventually led to many paintings inspired by iconography and eventually the publication of her first book, ‘Visual Contemplations’,[12] the artist’s visual meditation on the text ‘The Life Of Moses’[13] by St Gregory of Nyssa.

Delevoryas is still working into her eighties receiving attention in 2011 for her iPad paintings[14] and her most recent exhibition,[15] ‘Three Decades of Art’ was held at the Walton & Bovill Gallery, Suffolk, England, in the summer of 2016.

Solo exhibitions

USA

UK

Europe

Group Exhibitions

USA

UK

Delamore Gallery, Cornwood, Devon, 2007 -8

Awards

References

  1. ↑ Arts Magazine September 1964 and February 1965
  2. ↑ Chigago Times July 26th 1971 http://www.chipublib.org/chicago-newspapers-on-microfilm/
  3. ↑ London Fashion News Autumn/Winter 1971/2
  4. ↑ UK Vogue, Jan 1971 http://sighswhispers.blogspot.co.uk/2011/07/journey-to-us.html
  5. ↑ http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/05/07/here-comes-the-bride-in-flaming-red-two-centuries-of-colorful-wedding-dresses.html
  6. ↑ http://www.vanillabeer.co.uk/2014/08/19/der-volksstuhl/
  7. ↑ Illustrated London News Feb 1975
  8. ↑ Needlepoint News March 1977
  9. ↑ New York Times, October 13, 1994 ‘A Decorator’s Vision of the Handmade’
  10. ↑ http://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/house-home/designers-guilds-new-collection-encompasses-the-complete-interior
  11. ↑ Icon in the World. Resurgence, Issue 185 1997
  12. ↑ ISBN 978-1-908326-84-3, published by Sansom & Co, 2015
  13. ↑ ISBN 978-0060754648, published by HarperCollins, 2008
  14. ↑ iPad Artist Bristol Evening Post June 29th 2011 http://swns.com/news/artist-79-swaps-sketchbook-for-ipad-20281/
  15. ↑ http://www.waltonandbovillfineart.co.uk/exhibitions/previous

External links

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