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Dame Elizabeth Frink (1930-1993)

Dame Elisabeth Frink was born in Thurlow, Suffolk, in 1930. She studied at Guildford School of Art (1947-49) and Chelsea School of Art, London (1949-53) under Bernard Meadows and Willi Soukop. She taught at Chelsea School of Art (1953-61), St Martin's School of Art (1954-62) and was visiting lecturer at the Royal College of Art (1965-67).

Men, dogs, horses and birds were constant subject-matter throughout Frink's career. She modelled, cast in plaster and then carved the plaster, much as Henry Moore had done, to achieve a tougher surface when the plaster was cast in bronze. Unlike Moore, however, she rarely worked with the female form: "I have focused on the male because to me he is a subtle combination of sensuality and strength with vulnerability", (Elisabeth Frink: Sculpture, Harpvale, 1984).

Frink's drawing and graphic work followed the same themes as her 3-dimensional work, executed with a similar economy of means and feeling for surface texture.
As one of Britain's leading sculptors, Frink was awarded Honorary Doctorates by the University of Surrey (1977), Open University (1983), University of Warwick (1983), University of Cambridge (1988), University of Exeter (1988), University of Oxford (1989) and University of Keele (1989).

Frink received official recognition for her work, being awarded the CBE in 1969 and in 1982 she was created Dame of the British Empire

Scultures of Elizabeth Frink

About Dame Elisabeth Frink

She was born in Thurlow, Suffolk, England in 1930. From 1947-1949 she attended the Guilford School of Art and from 1949-1953 she studied under Bernard Meadows and Willi Soukop at the famous Chelsea School of Art. Solo exhibitions of her work have been staged in most of the world's finest galleries. Among her best-known works are the Eagle Lectern in Coventry Cathedral, Man on a Horse in Piccadilly Circus and the Kennedy Memorial in Dallas, Texas. Elisabeth Frink's honorary titles include degrees from Oxford University, the University of Surrey, University of Warwick, University of Exeter, and Cambridge University. She was awarded a Doctorate by the Royal College of Art in 1982. In 1990, a book entitled Elisabeth Frink: Sculpture and Drawing 1950-1990 was published in Washington, D.C. by the National Museum of Women in the Arts. The British Postal Service released a commemorative stamp honouring her as one of the outstanding women of the 20th Century. Dame Elisabeth Frink died in 1993.