This Is Tomorrow was an art exhibition in August 1956 at the Whitechapel Art Gallery on Whitechapel High Street in London's East End, UK, facilitated by curator Bryan Robertson . The core of the exhibition was the ICA Independent Group .
41-472: This is Tomorrow was a collaborative art exhibition that opened at the Whitechapel Art Gallery on 9 August 1956 and featured 12 exhibits within the show that featured collaborations between a variety of architects, painters, sculptors, and other artists. While each using their own style, they built pieces that represented their version of contemporary art. The result of the twelve groups was
82-839: A breakaway group from the SFIO. In April 1960, the PSA merged with several other groups to form the Unified Socialist Party (PSU). He made an unsuccessful bid to regain his seat in the National Assembly representing Eure in the 1962 election. In 1967 he returned to the Assembly as a PSU member for the Isère , but again lost his seat in the 1968 landslide election victory of the Gaullist party UDR . Mendès France and
123-734: A consistent opponent of French colonialism , and by 1954 France was becoming hopelessly embroiled in major colonial conflicts: the First Indochina War and the Algerian War of Independence . When French forces were defeated by the Vietnamese Communists at Dien Bien Phu in June 1954, the government of Joseph Laniel resigned, and Mendès France formed a government with support from the centre-right. Mendès France immediately negotiated an agreement with Ho Chi Minh ,
164-568: A country still recovering from war, the spare architecture offered an exploration of the fractured, but enduring presence of quotidian life during conflict. The exhibition catalogue featured essays by Reyner Banham and Lawrence Alloway . McHale wrote the text for the page Are they Cultured? and it was intended to be featured with the McHale-designed collage that got mispaginated in the catalogue. Colin St John Wilson designed
205-623: A director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development , and as French representative to the United Nations Economic and Social Council . In 1947, after democratic French politics resumed under the Fourth Republic , Mendès France was re-elected to the National Assembly. He first tried to form a government in June 1953, but was unable to gain the numbers in the Assembly. From 1950 he had been
246-935: A dozen bombing raids. After the Liberation of Paris in August 1944, he was appointed Minister for National Economy in the French provisional government by de Gaulle. He later headed the French delegation to the 1944 United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference at Bretton Woods . Mendès France soon fell out with the Finance Minister, René Pleven . Mendès France supported state regulation of wages and prices to control inflation, while Pleven favoured generally laissez-faire policies. When de Gaulle sided with Pleven, Mendès France resigned. Nonetheless, de Gaulle valued Mendès France's abilities, and appointed him as
287-579: A high price for 1956, sold out and had to be reprinted. This is Tomorrow is considered to be the forerunner of the British Pop Art movement. Crosby writes on 8 June 1955 that the discussions... are really the point of the collaboration... the exhibition will not be a collection of miscellaneous art works. The This Is Tomorrow exhibition included artists, architects, musicians and graphic designers working together in 12 teams—referred to as "groups"—an example of multi-disciplinary collaboration that
328-672: Is a public art gallery in Whitechapel on the north side of Whitechapel High Street , in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets . The original building, designed by Charles Harrison Townsend , opened in 1901 as one of the first publicly funded galleries for temporary exhibitions in London. The building is a notable example of the British Modern Style . In 2009 the gallery approximately doubled in size by incorporating
369-634: Is considered one of the most prominent statesmen of the French Fourth Republic . Mendès France was born on 11 January 1907 in Paris, the son of a textile merchant from Limoges . He was descended from Portuguese Jews who settled in France in the 16th century. He studied at the École des sciences politiques and the Faculty of Law of Paris , graduating with a doctorate in law and becoming
410-587: Is modern art to entertain people, modern art as a game people will want to play. The sense of involvement and fun carries through in the press clippings; journalists were most taken by the fact that the show was opened by Robby the Robot, star of the sci-fi movie Forbidden Planet and easier to book than Marilyn Monroe. The exhibition's most remembered exhibit was the room created by Group 2, comprising Richard Hamilton , John Voelcker and John McHale , though with help from Magda Cordell and Frank Cordell . It included
451-694: The Eure department; he was the Assembly's youngest member. In 1936 he came within 700 votes of losing to Modeste Legouez , the president of the radical agrarian group the Comités de défense paysanne in what he said was his hardest electoral fight. His ability was soon recognized, and in 1938 the government of Léon Blum appointed him Under Secretary of State for Finance. After the surrender of France to Nazi Germany in World War II , he fled to French North Africa with other army and air force units, but
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#1732786760413492-551: The Independent Group , known for their meetings at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) in London with some overlap between the two groups. The 12 exhibits were each produced separately and were independent of each other. After This is Tomorrow opened nearly a thousand people a day saw the exhibit. The catalogue for the exhibit, designed by Independent member and graphic designer Edward Wright cost five shillings,
533-688: The Op Art dazzle panels, collage Space modules, and pop art readymade of a Marilyn Monroe poster, the Van Gogh Sunflowers poster, a film advertising billboard of the Forbidden Planet , Robby the Robot , a Jukebox , the strawberry perfumed carpet, an endless reel of film depicting the Royal Navy Fleet at sea, large Guinness beer bottles, a Marlon Brando poster image and a 'CinemaScope' collage mural design, and
574-563: The Assembly, described his "patriotic, almost physical repulsion" for Mendès France. Undeterred, Mendès France next came to an agreement with Habib Bourguiba , the nationalist leader in Tunisia , for the independence of that colony by 1956, and began discussions with the nationalist leaders in Morocco for a French withdrawal. He also favoured concessions to the nationalists in Algeria ; but
615-518: The E=MC2 to final completion at the TIT. Group Six was composed of architects Alison and Peter Smithson and artists Eduardo Paolozzi and Nigel Henderson . The resulting work, "Patio and Pavilion", was a three walled structure with a corrugated plastic roof and surrounded by a sand patio. Found objects such as bike parts, a battered bugle and a clock without hands were strewn throughout the installation. In
656-657: The French side. Public opinion polls showed that, in February 1954, only 7% of the French people wanted to continue the fight to regain Indochina out of the hands of the Communists, led by Ho Chi Minh and his Viet Minh movement. At the 1954 Geneva Conference , Mendès France negotiated a deal that gave the Viet Minh control of Vietnam north of the seventeenth parallel, and allowed him to pull out all French forces. He
697-696: The Guinness beer bottles and altered other visual details in the mural. McHale and Hamilton collaborated on the Spectrum diagram reproduced in the exhibition catalogue, and McHale later produced a modified version of this in his Man Plus section in his book on the Future of the Future . The Pop art poster Just What Is It that Makes Today's Homes So Different, So Appealing? , was designed by Hamilton for Group 2. A second poster, comprising intersecting arrows and swirls
738-650: The ICA. This is Tomorrow is now considered a watershed in post-war British Art and in some respects kick started the development of the British arm of Pop Art . The 1977 song "This is Tomorrow" from In Your Mind by Bryan Ferry , a student of Richard Hamilton's, took its title from the name of the show. Parts of This Is Tomorrow were recreated in 1990 for an exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Arts . Whitechapel Art Gallery The Whitechapel Gallery
779-493: The PSU expressed sympathy for the sentiments and actions of the student rioters during the events of May 1968 , a position unusual for a politician of his age and status. One year later, Pompidou's socialist opponent in the presidential election of 1969 , Gaston Defferre of the SFIO, designated him his preferred Prime Minister prior to the election. The two campaigned together in what was the first – and so far only – dual "ticket" in
820-534: The SFIO. An advocate of greater European integration , he helped bring about the formation of the Western European Union , and proposed far-reaching economic reform. He also favoured defence co-operation with other European countries, but the National Assembly rejected the proposal for a European Defence Community , mainly because of misgivings about Germany's participation. His cabinet fell in February 1955. In 1956 he served as Minister of State in
861-542: The Vietnamese Communist leader. There was, he said, no choice but total withdrawal from Indochina , and the Assembly supported him by 471 votes to 14. Nevertheless, nationalist opinion was shocked, and Roman Catholic opinion opposed abandoning the Vietnamese believers to Communism. A tirade of abuse, much of it anti-Semitic , was directed at Mendès France. Jean-Marie Le Pen , then a Poujadist member of
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#1732786760413902-681: The Whitechapel Gallery to remain open to the public all year round. In 2006, Whitechapel Gallery and MIT Press formed an editorial alliance to produce a new series of books entitled Documents of Contemporary Art. The Whitechapel reopened in April 2009 after a two-year project, which approximately doubled the size of the Gallery by incorporating the adjacent former Passmore Edwards library building (vacated when Whitechapel Idea Store opened). The work cost approximately £13.5 million and
943-546: The Whitechapel Gallery was displaced by newer venues such as the Hayward Gallery , then in the 1980s it enjoyed a resurgence under the Directorship of Nicholas Serota . The gallery had a major refurbishment in 1986; and in 2009 expanded into the former Passmore Edwards Library building next door. The expansion, which doubled the gallery's physical size and nearly tripled its available exhibition space, now allows
984-476: The Whitechapel's standing as an educational charity. The archives catalogue the very conception of the gallery, as well as the complete directors' files of correspondence which reveal the reasons behind key decisions in the Gallery's history. Pierre Mend%C3%A8s France Pierre Isaac Isidore Mendès France ( French: [pjɛʁ mɑ̃dɛs fʁɑ̃s] ; 11 January 1907 – 18 October 1982)
1025-488: The adjacent former Passmore Edwards library building. It exhibits the work of contemporary artists and organizes retrospective exhibitions and other art shows. The gallery exhibited Pablo Picasso 's Guernica in 1938 as part of a touring exhibition organised by Roland Penrose to protest against the Spanish Civil War . The gallery played a major role in the history of post-war British art by promoting
1066-499: The ambient sounds from audience cybernetic feedback. The Senses panel with arrows featuring Tito was a joint collaboration between Hamilton and McHale, and the version reproduced in the catalogue was slightly different in wording to alter the optical perception of viewers. Hamilton later produced a third version depicting the Senses panel in an interior collage depicting the TIT, but he changed the face to Pierre Mendès France , and changed
1107-441: The attempt to evoke a variety of external environment through theories that were inspired by communications guru Marshall McLuhan , as well as symbols of pop culture. This is Tomorrow was nearly two years in the making, after architect and art critic Theo Crosby came up with the idea of mounting a large scale collaborative show at Whitechapel Gallery. By 1955 the participants were roughly divided into two camps; Constructivist, and
1148-583: The cabinet headed by the SFIO leader Guy Mollet , but resigned over Mollet's handling of the Algerian War, which was coming to dominate French politics. His split over Algeria with Edgar Faure , leader of the conservative wing of the Radical Party, led to Mendès France resigning as party leader in 1957. Like most of the French left, Mendès France opposed de Gaulle's seizure of power in May 1958 , when
1189-605: The design of the Pop art collage poster that were all provided by John McHale. Frank Cordell assisted McHale with accessing the film posters such as Julius Caesar (1953) for the collage murals, the Forbidden Planet items, the juke box, and installing the film projector, and installing the Duchamp rotor discs given to McHale by Marcel Duchamp in New York. Frank Cordell also installed the electronic amplifier and microphone enabling
1230-536: The exhibition guide. The graphic designer Edward Wright (1912–88), who taught typography at the Central School of Art from 1950 to 1955 and then the Royal College of Art, designed the catalogue for This Is Tomorrow. Theo Crosby found the money for it, and it was printed by Lund Humphries . The director of Lund Humphries, Peter Gregory along with Peter Watson were among the original founding patrons of
1271-488: The general public as well as introducing some of the artists, concepts, designers and photographers that would define the Swinging Sixties . Throughout its history, the gallery had a series of open exhibitions that provided a platform for the area's artist community, but by the early 1990s these open shows became less relevant as emerging artists moved to other areas. In the late 1970s, the critical importance of
This Is Tomorrow - Misplaced Pages Continue
1312-721: The mounting crisis in Algeria brought about a breakdown in the Fourth Republic system and the creation of a Fifth Republic . He led the Union of Democratic Forces , an anti- Gaullist group, but in the November 1958 elections he lost his seat in the Assembly. After being expelled from the Radical Party, whose majority faction supported de Gaulle, in late 1959 he joined the Autonomous Socialist Party (PSA),
1353-404: The presence of a million Pied-noirs there left the colonial power no easy way to extricate itself from that situation. The future mercenary Bob Denard was convicted in 1954 and sentenced to fourteen months in prison for an assassination attempt against Mendès France. Mendès France hoped that the Radical Party would become the party of modernization and renewal in French politics, replacing
1394-421: The work of emerging artists. Several significant exhibitions were held at the Whitechapel Gallery including This is Tomorrow in 1956, the first UK exhibition by Mark Rothko in 1961, and in 1964, The New Generation show which featured John Hoyland , Bridget Riley , David Hockney and Patrick Caulfield among others. Initiated by members of the Independent Group , the exhibition brought Pop Art to
1435-583: The youngest member of the Paris bar association in 1926, at age 19. In 1924, Mendès France joined the Radical Party , the traditional party of the French middle-class centre-left (not to be confused with the mainstream SFIO , often called the Socialist Party). He married Lili Cicurel, the niece of Salvator Cicurel . In 1932, Mendès France was elected member of the Chamber of Deputies for
1476-493: Was a French politician who served as prime minister of France for eight months from 1954 to 1955. As a member of the Radical Party , he headed a government supported by a coalition of Gaullists ( RPF ), moderate socialists ( UDSR ), Christian democrats ( MRP ) and liberal-conservatives ( CNIP ). His main priority was ending the Indochina War , which had already cost 92,000 lives, with 114,000 wounded and 28,000 captured on
1517-664: Was arrested by the Vichy government authorities and imprisoned for desertion. He escaped and succeeded in reaching Britain, where he joined the Free French forces led by Charles de Gaulle . Mendès France later described his trial, conviction and subsequent escape in the famous documentary The Sorrow and the Pity . During the latter years of the war, Mendès France served in the Free French Air Forces and flew in
1558-531: Was assigned to each group for materials; and their sense of the importance of the show within the context of the establishment they opposed. This is Tomorrow is viewed as a groundbreaking exhibition because of the issues it addressed early that later became crucial in contemporary art, not simply the process of collaborative action, but the whole notion of creating an environment inside the art gallery. The ripples of influence it created 50 years ago are still being felt today. As Banham stated in his documentary: This
1599-473: Was designed by McHale and taken to the silk screen stage by Hamilton. McHale also supplied a third separate designed poster to Hamilton with an arrow, containing the formula E=MC2 which was a Pop art '"mass" consumer' reference to the Albert Einstein famous mass-energy equivalence relativity formula. But Hamilton chose not to collaborate on the third poster, and expend the 'creative "energy"' to bring
1640-610: Was partly funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund . A full-size tapestry based on Pablo Picasso's Guernica , by Jacqueline de la Baume Dürrbach and loaned from the United Nations Art Collection , was included in the inaugural exhibition by Goshka Macuga . and Isa Genzken . As part of the expansion, a new Archive Gallery, a reading room and an archive repository (where the Whitechapel's historic records are held) have been created to support
1681-403: Was still unusual. Each group took as their starting point the human senses and the theme of habitation. Each group worked independently but saw the final display as one environment. In highlights from a 1979 documentary by the architectural critic Reyner Banham, artists and architects who were involved recall the sense of excitement they felt over the collaborations; the constraints of cost—only £50