Seaside postcards of D. Tempest #0040

The Collector: Terry Webster, sculptor, retired lecturer in Fine Art & Graphic Design, Leamington Spa (UK).

The Collection: The seaside postcards of D.Tempest.

The story behind the collection...

Inspired by a book featuring the work of D. Tempest, I started collecting postcards in the 70's and 80's. Many antique shops have postcards for sale and by searching through the sections marked “comic” I amassed well over a hundred cards.

My interest developed into using the images in three dimensions. The Tempest figures lend themselves to high relief models whereas Donald McGill, although better known as a seaside postcard artist, did the sort of drawings which do not offer the same potential for turning the images into models.

I have always loved cartoons, mainly being more interested in the artwork than the captions. Tempest's use of gross exaggeration in the proportion of his figures, the bright primary colours and subtle backgrounds beautifully evoke the period he worked in when British seaside holidays were the highlight of the year.

Having gone through art school when Pop Art as a movement was developing, I have always had a strong interest in brash, highly coloured commercial and popular imagery, seaside postcards being a striking example. As most of my models tend to have a comic element, fat ladies in period bathing costume seemed an irresistible direction to go in and Tempest's drawings became a major inspiration. The models featured are made from clay, biscuit fired and painted in enamel.

Tempest postcards are more difficult to find now and more expensive but I'm always looking out for that elusive addition to my collection.

All images © Helen and Graham Powell with the kind permission of Terry Webster.