Kenneth Spring

Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth Arthur Spring OBE TD (23 October 1921 – 25 December 1997) was a British Army officer, artist and co-founder of the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain.

Early life and family

Spring was born in Dulwich, London, the son of Albert Spring (1884–1961), a former Royal Flying Corps officer and schoolmaster, and the composer, Cecil Dorothy Arburn Chapman (1885–1961).^[1] Spring was a descendant of the Suffolk Spring family, and a relation of Lord Risby and Brigadier-General Frederick Spring.^[2] He was educated at Alleyn's School, London, where he was a close friend of John Lanchbery, before attending Blackpool Art School.

Military career

On call-up in the

After returning to England in 1947, Spring gained an art teaching diploma from the University of London and became a teacher at his alma mater, Alleyn's School.^[10] In 1949 he founded the influential South East London Art Group, of which he became chairman, and was closely associated with artists such as Keith Godwin and Stanley Roy Badmin. In 1953 he was appointed Lecturer in Art at Goldsmiths, University of London. In 1958 he was appointed chief examiner of art by the London University Board and was responsible for the introduction of the new craft syllabus. He sat on the executive committee of the Camberwell Arts Council.

In 1956 he was a co-founder, alongside Michael Croft, of the National Youth Theatre.^[11][12][13] He was production manager for the Youth Theatre's first play, Henry V, which appeared at the Toynbee Hall in London in September 1956. He continued to be involved in Youth Theatre productions until 1962. In 1965 Spring moved to Oxfordshire to become a master at Bloxham School.

Style

Spring worked in a variety of media, including watercolour, oil, print, and carving in stone and wood. His body of work in watercolour and oil were largely of landscapes, and were in a similar style to S. R. Badmin. Other flat work shows strong affinities with contemporary neo-romantic artists such as John Piper. He was also influenced by Sir William Coldstream, who he met whilst serving in the Royal Artillery and from whom he received tutelage at Camberwell College of Arts. His wood carving style was influenced by Frank Dobson and Jacob Epstein, and mostly depicted the human form. Spring's woodcutting technique was influenced by Eric Ravilious.

Personal life

Spring married Doreen Healy in 1947 and together they had two children:^[14]

• David Spring (1948–1980), married Elizabeth Gibbs^[15]
• Michael Spring (b.1953), married Penelope Johns Taylor^[16]

He died on 25 December 1997 in Sibford Ferris and is buried in Bloxham.

References