UFO Coming thumbnail 1
UFO Coming thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

UFO Coming

Poster
1967 (designed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This is a signed first pressing poster, designed by design duo Michael English and Nigel Waymouth, known as Hapshash and the Coloured Coat. In the late 1960s they created psychedelic posters for many of the English bands of the time, and decorated and advertised Nigel Waymouth's King's Road boutique, Granny Takes a Trip. They also designed for concerts held at the UFO club and Saville Theatre, and for underground magazine Oz. Their influences came from the decorative and eroticised designs of Art Nouveau, combined with the melting rainbow colours of LSD visions and pop art inspirations from the post-war media; traces of Disney, horror movie monsters and comic book characters and can often be seen hiding amongst the images.

UFO club was run by John Hopkins, editor of underground newspaper International Times. At the beginning of June 1967, after much harrassment of the magazine by the police, he was imprisoned for drug offences. Police began to put pressure on UFO following this, and its lease was eventually revoked by the landlord. These concerts, featuring Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Soft Machine and the Liverpool Love Festival, were some of the last events at the Tottenham Court Road site before it moved to the Roundhouse and finally shut down in October 1967.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleUFO Coming (popular title)
Materials and techniques
Screen print on paper
Brief description
Poster for The Crazy World of Arthur Brown at UFO, 16 and 23 June. Signed by Nigel Waymouth and Michael English. Michael English collection.
Physical description
Printed colour poster in yellow, purple and gold, illustrated with psychedelic design, featuring nudes and butterflies.
Dimensions
  • Height: 73.5cm
  • Width: 51.8cm
Style
Marks and inscriptions
  • UFO COMING
  • JUNE 16 CRAZY WORLD / OF ARTHUR BRWON / SOFT MACHINE / JUNE 23 LIVERPOOL LOVE / FESTIVAL
  • Nigel Weymouth / M English (signed by artists in pen at bottom right of poster.)
Credit line
Given by Michael English
Object history
Signed first pressing.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This is a signed first pressing poster, designed by design duo Michael English and Nigel Waymouth, known as Hapshash and the Coloured Coat. In the late 1960s they created psychedelic posters for many of the English bands of the time, and decorated and advertised Nigel Waymouth's King's Road boutique, Granny Takes a Trip. They also designed for concerts held at the UFO club and Saville Theatre, and for underground magazine Oz. Their influences came from the decorative and eroticised designs of Art Nouveau, combined with the melting rainbow colours of LSD visions and pop art inspirations from the post-war media; traces of Disney, horror movie monsters and comic book characters and can often be seen hiding amongst the images.

UFO club was run by John Hopkins, editor of underground newspaper International Times. At the beginning of June 1967, after much harrassment of the magazine by the police, he was imprisoned for drug offences. Police began to put pressure on UFO following this, and its lease was eventually revoked by the landlord. These concerts, featuring Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Soft Machine and the Liverpool Love Festival, were some of the last events at the Tottenham Court Road site before it moved to the Roundhouse and finally shut down in October 1967.
Collection
Accession number
S.22-1978

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Record createdFebruary 24, 2010
Record URL
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