Puzzle
1979
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This is known as a cluster puzzle, a type of non-interlocking jigsaw in which each piece is usually a single, whole picture as opposed to the traditional jigsaw and dissected puzzle where each piece is a part making up a whole picture.
Husband and wife George Luck and Kay Luck traded as George Luck Ltd. in Somerset, England between 1974 and 2013 during which time they produced over 500 puzzle designs, 8 of which were cluster puzzles. The Lucks began their business as a cottage industry, with Kay doing most of the designing and from time-to-time the company manufactured puzzles by other designers, such as Philip Gell.
Italian designer Enzo Mari designed this type of cluster puzzle in the late 1950s and early 1960s and Philip Gell may have been influenced by Mari’s work since the animals in both designers’ work share a lack of internal decoration, with eyes portrayed as small holes.
Gell designed a few other puzzles for George Luck Ltd. however these didn’t sell as well as the Ark Puzzle as they were more expensive to produce and didn’t feature animals - a winning formula for best-selling puzzles, as far as the Luck’s were concerned.
Husband and wife George Luck and Kay Luck traded as George Luck Ltd. in Somerset, England between 1974 and 2013 during which time they produced over 500 puzzle designs, 8 of which were cluster puzzles. The Lucks began their business as a cottage industry, with Kay doing most of the designing and from time-to-time the company manufactured puzzles by other designers, such as Philip Gell.
Italian designer Enzo Mari designed this type of cluster puzzle in the late 1950s and early 1960s and Philip Gell may have been influenced by Mari’s work since the animals in both designers’ work share a lack of internal decoration, with eyes portrayed as small holes.
Gell designed a few other puzzles for George Luck Ltd. however these didn’t sell as well as the Ark Puzzle as they were more expensive to produce and didn’t feature animals - a winning formula for best-selling puzzles, as far as the Luck’s were concerned.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Stained plywood cut using an electric jigsaw, colour printed card, transparent plastic |
| Brief description | Ark Puzzle, designed by Philip Gell, made by George Luck Ltd., England, 1979 |
| Physical description | Non-interlocking puzzle comprising 62 individual plywood animal pieces. The animals fit together within a symmetrical ark outline to form the shape of Noah’s Ark. Each animal has a loosely defined, silhouette form and the only interior detail is a small hole for an eye. The animals lie at various orientations with each piece stained in a single colour of either grey, off-white, mid and dark brown, red, orange or green. The object is housed in its original packaging: a shallow card frame forming a box base, with a transparent plastic lid. The latter is slightly dented and has lengths of sticky tape on each side which were used to seal the box historically. A loose sheet of printed card with George Luck Ltd. branding lies behind the jigsaw. There is a 300 x 600 x 200mm section of plywood (top layer only) missing from the leg of the animal in the top right corner of the puzzle. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Given by Mrs P Barton |
| Historical context | Philip Gell is a graphic designer from the UK who designed this Noah’s Ark puzzle in his spare time over the course of three years. Gell approached George Luck Ltd. a jigsaw company based in Martock, Somerset to produce the puzzle in the late 1970s and it proved to be a popular design, with global sales. The Ark Puzzle won the London Design Centre Award in 1982 and was a high-end example of George Luck Ltd.’s work. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | This is known as a cluster puzzle, a type of non-interlocking jigsaw in which each piece is usually a single, whole picture as opposed to the traditional jigsaw and dissected puzzle where each piece is a part making up a whole picture. Husband and wife George Luck and Kay Luck traded as George Luck Ltd. in Somerset, England between 1974 and 2013 during which time they produced over 500 puzzle designs, 8 of which were cluster puzzles. The Lucks began their business as a cottage industry, with Kay doing most of the designing and from time-to-time the company manufactured puzzles by other designers, such as Philip Gell. Italian designer Enzo Mari designed this type of cluster puzzle in the late 1950s and early 1960s and Philip Gell may have been influenced by Mari’s work since the animals in both designers’ work share a lack of internal decoration, with eyes portrayed as small holes. Gell designed a few other puzzles for George Luck Ltd. however these didn’t sell as well as the Ark Puzzle as they were more expensive to produce and didn’t feature animals - a winning formula for best-selling puzzles, as far as the Luck’s were concerned. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | B.25-2022 |
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| Record created | February 12, 2021 |
| Record URL |
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