The history of post-war British painting is often told through its competing movements—abstraction, conceptualism, and performance art—but throughout the 20th century, figurative painters in London remained deeply engaged with human experience, social change, and the materiality of paint.
This blog series explores different strands of figurative painting, from the Kitchen Sink Painters, who depicted the realities of working-class life, to the School of London, known for its psychological intensity and expressive brushwork. These movements intersect with the Borough Group, founded in 1946 by David Bomberg and his students, which emphasized the physicality of paint and the importance of direct observation.
By examining these movements and their relationships to British social history and artistic trends, we aim to uncover the enduring significance of figurative art in the 20th and 21st centuries. Upcoming posts will further explore connections and influences within this tradition.
A Movement of Everyday Life
Key Artists: John Bratby, Derrick Greaves, Edward Middleditch, Jack Smith, Peter Coker
Related Artists: Prunella Clough, Joan Eardley, John Berger, Ruskin Spear
Emerging in the early 1950s, the Kitchen Sink Painters focused on the realities of post-war British life, depicting modest domestic scenes, urban landscapes, and working-class interiors. Their work was deeply rooted in social realism, mirroring the mood of British theatre and literature, such as John Osborne’s Look Back in Anger (1956).
Their paintings were characterized by cluttered compositions, muted palettes, and an emphasis on everyday objects—kitchen sinks, household furniture, and unremarkable urban settings. The movement gained recognition when the artists exhibited together at the 1956 Venice Biennale, supported by Helen Lessore’s Beaux Arts Gallery.
“I just painted the objects around me. I lived in that kind of house… If one had lived in a palace, one might have painted chandeliers.” – Jack Smith
A Political and Critical Reception
While the movement was not strictly ideological, it had ties to Marxist cultural criticism, particularly through John Berger, who championed their focus on working-class life. However, for many of the artists, their work was less about politics and more about painting the truth of everyday experience.
The name Kitchen Sink was coined by critic David Sylvester in a 1954 article for Encounter. Initially intended as a criticism, the term stuck, reflecting the painters' focus on the ordinary and unembellished. Their style had links to Pop Art, Soviet Realism, and post-war existentialist painting, but its momentum faded by the early 1960s as artistic trends shifted.