Vera Spencer (British b.1926)
Born in Prague, Spencer arrived in England in 1936 and studied at the Slade School of Art and Central School of Textile Design in London. She participated actively in the Post-War abstract movement, exhibiting alongside artists such as Jean Arp, Sonia Delauney, Adrian Heath, Terry Frost, Ben Nicholson, Barbara Hepworth and Roger Hilton at some of the foremost London galleries, including Gimpel Fils, Redfern Gallery, Burlington Galleries and the AIA (Artists International Association)amongst others.
Her work was widely seen on the Continent, particularly in Paris in 1948 at the Galerie Apollinaire and 1952 at the Galerie Arnaud. She also co-exhibited in Brussels with Jean Deyrolle, Jeanne Coppel and John Koenig, mainly at Galerie d'Aujourd'hui. Her works were included in many important mixed shows of abstract works, including AIA in 1951, Collages and Objects at ICA in 1954, and Groupe Espace at Royal Festival Hall, 1955.
Spencer's compositions are evocative, showing weightless, floating forms that are nevertheless powerful as well as delicate, often painted in bright and pure colours.
Public collections include
Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry
Solo Exhibitions
1948, Vera Spencer, Galerie Apollinaire, London
1964, Vera Spencer, The Elisabeth Gallery, Coventry
Group Exhibitions
1951, Abstract Paintings, Sculptures, Mobiles, AIA Gallery (Artists International Association), London; British Abstract Art, Gimpel Fils, London; South Bank Exhibition, Festival of Britain; Designers in Britain 3, Society of Industrial Artists
1952, Trois Peintres, Galerie Arnaud, Paris; The Mirror and the Square, AIA Gallery (Artists International Association), Burlington Galleries, London
1953, 3rd Weekend Exhibition, Adrian Heath's Studio, London
1954, The ICA (Institute of Contemporary Arts), London; Artist versus Machine, Building Centre, London; Collages, Palais des Beaux Arts, Paris
1955, Summer Exhibition, The Royal Academy, Londo; Group Espace, Royal Festival Hall, London; Galerie Arnaud, Paris
1956, International Collage Exhibition, Rose Fried Gallery, New York
1959, The Society of Women Artists, London
1963, Coventry and Warwickshire Society of Artists; Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry
1964, Cinquante ans de collages : Papiers collés, assemblages, collages du cubisme à nos jours, Musée d'art et d'industrie, Saint-Étienne
1965, The London Group, London
1968, The Elizabeth Gallery, Coventry