The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition held throughout the United
Kingdom in the summer of 1951. This also happened to be
the same year they celebrated the centenary, almost to the day, of the 1851
Great Exhibition.
In keeping with the principles of
the Festival, a young architect aged only 38, Hugh Casson, was appointed
Director of Architecture for the Festival and to appoint other young architects
to design its buildings. The main site featured the largest dome in the world
at the time, standing 93 feet tall with a diameter of 365 feet. This held
exhibitions on the theme of discovery such as the New World, the Polar regions,
the Sea, the Sky and Outer Space.
Adjacent to the Dome was the Skylon, an unusual, vertical cigar-shaped tower supported by cables that gave the impression hat it was floating above the ground.
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| Logo designed by Abram Games |
In 1948, two years after being de-mobbed, ‘Official
War Poster Artist’, Abram Games (1914-1996), won the competition to design the symbol for
the Festival of Britain. His ‘Britannia’ emblem was ubiquitous, versatile and
memorable. This was to be a significant event in his six-decade career,
establishing him as one of twentieth century Britain’s most respected graphic
designers.
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| Poster designed by Abram Games |
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| Guide priced at two shillings and sixpence ( 12 ½ p ) |
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Guide to Festval ship Campania
price two shillings ( 10p ) |
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| A leaflet |
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| Guide to the Pleasure Gardens in Battersea Park |
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| Guide to the Exhibition of Science in South Kensington |
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| The same design used on regional guides - 'Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Nottingham' |
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| 2 1/2 penny Commemorative stamp featuring Britannia and King George VI |
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| 4 penny Commemorative stamp featuring Abram Games' logo and King George VI |
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| Festival of Britain first day cover |
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| Festival of Britain first day cover |
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| Transport Information poster |
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| Pre-Festival publicity |
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| Souvenir programme for the opening of the Royal Festival Hall |
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| Poster for the Festival Pleasure Gardens in Battersea Park |
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| Programme for Festival in the London Borough of Camberwell |
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| Programme for the Festival in Southampton |
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| Poster for the Festival in Liverpool |
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| Festival of Britain typeface designed by Phillip Boydell 1951 |
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Guide, Programme and Calendar, showing the Festival Star Motif by Abram Games
Illustrations by Eric Fraser |
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| Festival Exhibtion at the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh |
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| Patons and Baldwins Festival Knitting Book front cover |
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| Patons and Baldwins Festival Knitting Book back cover |
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Festival of Britain Print by Herbert Williams
lithograph |
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| Souvenir glass ashtray and enamel badge from my own collection |
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Designer Paul Smith limited edition Festival of Britain watch design
© Paul Smith |
Part 2 of this post takes a look at the Festival textiles.
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