Ten Sitting Rooms at the ICA, November 1-8 1970: Vaughan Grylls, Elizabeth Harrison, Simon Haynes, Patrick Hughes, Carol Joseph, Bruce Lacey, Diane Livey, Andrew Logan, Marlene Raybould + Gerard Wilson
“It isn’t so much what’s on the table that matters, as what’s on the chairs”
Jonathan Swift, from a letter to his friend Esther Johnson, 1711
//Simon Haynes in his ICA sitting room, 1970. Source publication: Unknown//
Ten Sitting Rooms was the title of a group exhibition curated by Jasia Reichardt at London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts in 1970. She organised a budget of £100 for each artist and gave them the brief of making a sitting room in spaces of either 15 x 18 feet or 12 x 24 feet.
I was alerted to the show’s existence by participant Simon Haynes, whose work I have been featuring here. Haynes’ Pop environment, which was produced in collaboration with his wife Sue, developed the themes and materials they used in the boardroom interior and furniture created earlier that year for Trevor Myles’ and Tommy Roberts’ boutique Mr Freedom at 430 King’s Road.
//Photo courtesy Simon Haynes//
//Photo courtesy Simon Haynes//
//Haynes' early 70s flatmate, writer Jonathan Meades poses in the sitting room. Photo: Simon Haynes//
//Sue and Simon Haynes in the Mr Freedom boardroom, 1970. Photo: Tim Street-Porter//
In the show catalogue Jasia Reichardt explained that the sitting room was chosen because it “allows for the greatest variety of interpretation”. Visitors to the show were invited to use the spaces since the 10 created by the artists represented “a halfway house between the area of art which addresses itself solely to the mind and that which fulfils our practical needs”.
//Catalogue, front cover//
The exhibition presented work by such notables as Bruce Lacey (subject of Nick Abrahams’ and Jeremy Deller’s terrific 2012 documentary) and Patrick Hughes. There were several recent art school graduates aside from Haynes, including Andrew Logan, who had just emerged from Oxford School of Architecture and presented an environment similar to his student lodgings at 10 Denmark Street, Oxford. In his biographical note, Logan revealed he was working on the decor of the milliner’s shop run by his sister Diane in London’s Chiltern Street.
//Postcard bought last month at the V&A showing Logan's 1969 Oxford room//
The catalogue is a handsome document. Designed by John Furnival, the artist bios and details of their artworks are supplemented by a short story by Ivor Cutler, a cartoon by Norman Toynton and photographs of sculptures by Penny White and Roger Kent.
The cover reproduces The Converging Of Various Planes, a work by Charles Hayter, the 19th century miniatures painter and Professor of Perspective to her Late Royal Highness The Princess Charlotte of Saxe Cobourg.
This was taken from Hayter’s 1820 book (deep breath) An Introduction to Perspective, Drawing and Painting, in a Series of Pleasing and Familiar Dialogues between the Author’s Children; illustrated by appropriate Plates and Diagrams and a Sufficiency of Practical Geometry; and a Compendium of Genuine Instruction, comprising a Progressive and Complete Body of Information, carefully adapted for the Instruction of Females, and suited equally to the Simplicity of Youth and to Mental Maturity.
//Catalogue, back cover//
Visit Jasia Reichardt’s archive of concrete and sound poetry here.
Find out more about The Bruce Lacey Experience here.
John Furnival’s work has included founding the Openings Press and performances with the concrete poet Dom Sylvester Houédard. Read more about him here.
A selection of the other participants: