Joe Tilson

 1928: Born in London, August 24.

1944-46: Works as a carpenter and joiner.

1946-49: Serves in the R. A. F. (Royal Air Force).

1949-52: Studies at the St. Martin’s School of Art, London; becomes member of the I.C.A. (Institute of Contemporary Arts) in Dover Street where he later meets Richard Hamilton, Eduardo Paolozzi and Reyner Banham.

1952-55: Continues his studies at the Royal College of Art London.

1955: Receives the Rome Prize and a scholarship in Rome, meets Joslyn Morton, who studies with Marino Marini at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera in Milan, they get married the year after in Venice.

1955-57: Works in Italy and Spain.

1958-63: Teaches at St. Martin’s School of Art.

1962-63: Visiting lecturer at Slade School of Art, University of London and King’s College, University of Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne.

1964: Designs the British Section of the Triennale of Milan and exhibits at the British Pavilion of the XXXII Venice Biennale, the famous Pop Art Biennale that included Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Jim Dine and Claes Oldenburg.

1966: Teaches at the School of Visual Arts, New York.

1966-71: Becomes member of the Art Panel, Arts Council of Great Britain.

1970: Dissatisfied with the technological and industrial ‘progress’ of the consumer society he ends his Pop Art years and starts Alchera, a series of works based on a circular mnemonic device relating to the four cardinal pints, the four elements, the four seasons, the lunar months, labyrinth ladders, words and symbols.

1971: The stylistic change leads him to move to Christian Malford, Wiltshire and an old farmhouse in the mountains of Tuscany; first retrospective exhibition at the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen Rotterdam.

1972: Visiting lecturer at the Staatliche Hochschule für Bildendende Künste in Hamburg.

1979: Retrospective exhibition of graphics at Vancouver Art Gallery, Canada.

1985: Is elected associate of the Royal Academy of Arts, London.

1996: Paints the banner for the Palio of 1996, receives the Grand Prix d’Honneur at the Biennal of Ljublijana.

From 1997 until 2022:Several retrospective exhibitions all over the world.

On November 9th 2023, in London, Joe Tilson passed away aged 95.