RICHARD HAMILTON

I really like the work of English painter and collage artist Richard Hamilton. I first discovered his work when reading about one of my favourite albums, the Beatles' 1968 self-titled release, colloquially refered to as The White Album. Hamilton was involved with various members of the 1960s Pop Music scene, and it was his friendship with Paul McCartney which led him to design the cover art. The work consists of a plain white sleeve, with the band's name discreetly embossed and right-alligned. The original record covers (early LP and CD releases) also featured a unique stamped serial number, which highlighted, according to Hamilton "the ironic situation of a numbered edition of something like five million copies".



















I particularly enjoy Hamiliton's piece "Just what is it that makes today's homes so different, so appealing?" which was created in 1956 for the catalogue of the This Is Tomorrow exhibition in London, in which it was reproduced in black and white. The image was additionally used in posters for the exhibit. The collage consists of a number of images sourced from American magazines. The principle template is taken from the Ladies Home Journal for Amstrong Floors, and demonstrates a modern sitting room. The title of the work is taken from copy in the advert, which states "Just what is it that makes today's homes so different, so appealing? Open planning of course - and a bold use of colour".

Hamiliton has subsequently reworked the composition and subject matter of the Pop Art collage, most notably in 1992 with an alternate version featuring a female bodybuilder.