Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level E , Case I, Shelf 189, Box A

Police arriving at the scene of a car crash

Drawing
late 1940s (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Wilfrid R. Addey (1912-1999) worked as a commercial artist for over sixty years, working for Dorland Advertising and Mitchells among other London advertising firms. His work shows the range of products and illustration styles, from aeroplanes and cars, beer and perfume, to satirical cartoons and calendar pin-up girls and is representative of the post war boom in advertising during the late 1940s and 1950s.

This illustration in pen, ink and wash shows police arriving at the scene of a car crash. The image has been cropped in places to emphasize the heightened emotion of the subject. Black and white has been used to create strong contrasts of light and shade that reflect the lighting of Film Noir films of the late 1940s and early 1950s that would have appealed to an audience of this date.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitlePolice arriving at the scene of a car crash (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Pen and ink drawing
Brief description
Illustration showing Police arriving at the scene of a car crash
Physical description
Pen and ink illustration. A police car is shown in the bottom right hand corner. In the middle distance a car has crashed in to the side of a truck, the driver is shown slumped over the steering wheel.
Dimensions
  • Height: 27.1cm
  • Width: 36.6cm
Credit line
Given by K. D. and E. F. Law
Subjects depicted
Summary
Wilfrid R. Addey (1912-1999) worked as a commercial artist for over sixty years, working for Dorland Advertising and Mitchells among other London advertising firms. His work shows the range of products and illustration styles, from aeroplanes and cars, beer and perfume, to satirical cartoons and calendar pin-up girls and is representative of the post war boom in advertising during the late 1940s and 1950s.

This illustration in pen, ink and wash shows police arriving at the scene of a car crash. The image has been cropped in places to emphasize the heightened emotion of the subject. Black and white has been used to create strong contrasts of light and shade that reflect the lighting of Film Noir films of the late 1940s and early 1950s that would have appealed to an audience of this date.
Collection
Accession number
E.181-2003

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Record createdMay 15, 2009
Record URL
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