RAiR | 1983-84
John Furnival
Born in London, England, John Philip Furnival (1933 - 2020) was a Russian linguist in the British War Office during World War II. After the war, he gained two degrees in art from the Wimbledon College of Art in 1955 and the Royal College of Art in 1960. He taught Fine Art at, amongst others, the Bath College of Art in Corsham for over thirty years. John co-developed the artistic practice of (minimalist) Concrete Poetry to pioneer (maximalist) Visual Poetry. John exhibited at numerous international exhibitions, including Europe and the United States. His work is in the collections of the Tate, the British Council, the Getty Collection and the Sakner Archive of Concrete and Visual Poetry. In 2018 the Arts Council of England awarded John and his wife, fellow artist Astrid Furnival, a grant for a travelling exhibition touring England and Europe.