A free exhibition of highlights from The Pearson Silver Collection devoted to post-World War II British designer silver will be held at Noonans Mayfair (16 Bolton Street, London W1J 8BQ) between Monday, 30 October to Friday, 10 November, 2023.
Featuring works including fine boxes and magnificent candelabra by Stuart Devlin (1931-2018) and Gerald Benney (1930 – 2008), the Exhibition will be open daily between 10.30am – 4pm (Closed on Sunday 5 November) and the catalogue is sponsored by The Goldsmiths’ Company. Many of the pieces are being shown for the first time.
Frances Noble, Associate Director and Head of Jewellery at Noonans explains: “We are delighted to be hosting an exhibition of highlights from the Pearson Silver Collection, the largest collection of its kind in private hands and is regarded as being of national importance.”
She continued: “In the late 1950s, there was a Renaissance in British silverware to break away from the Scandinavian influence on British design led by a small group of silversmiths including Benney and Devlin, working towards creating an international image of British silver in modern terms.”
This exhibition features a run of 66 boxes created by Benney including the first that was made in 1952, to one of his last in 2000. As John Andrew, owner of the Pearson Silver Collection noted: “This collection took 30 years to form, the most difficult to secure being one of the six boxes commissioned by Queen Elizabeth II to present to dignitaries. We believe this run of boxes is unrivalled internationally and this is the first time the complete run has been displayed.”
He continued: “There are three surviving centrepieces. We are showing the second centrepiece Devlin made, the only surviving enamel example, and a later one. The exhibition also includes the first significant piece of silver Benney ever made – a goblet – at the Brighton College of Art.”
“While Devlin’s 1960s lighting is magical, he will be remembered for his creativity. We are displaying 17 of his boxes, including the incredible ‘cobweb box’ that he not only designed but also made at the bench, plus a broad cross-section of his work. When Godfrey Winn, the writer, actor, and newspaper columnist visited Devlin’s Clerkenwell workshop in 1968, he described what he saw as “a veritable Aladdin’s cave”, adding that the objects, “were the work of a magician”.”
Visit the exhibition page online for more information.
