Imaging Sport at the Grosvenor School of Modern Art (1929-37)

The mass popularity of sport in Britain during the inter-war years was a source of fascination and inspiration for a group of artists working at the Grosvenor School of Modern Art in London. Although largely neglected by their contemporaries, sport was embraced by Grosvenor School artists as a means to engage with both modernity and tradition within contemporary British culture. This essay examines one work, Cyril Power's 1930 linocut print, ‘The Eight’, as a case study to investigate the interrelationship between two cultural activities frequently regarded as at opposing ends of the cultural spectrum: art and sport. By simultaneously drawing upon a rich heritage of visual culture conventions and deploying new media and methods to represent the excitement, dynamism and sheer energy of sport, Power's work offers an insight into how visual culture can engage with, and enhance, our understanding of contemporary debates and practices in both fields of activity.