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Sketch for Flower Kitchen

Drawing
12/12/1972 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This sketch shows the first ideas for an extraordinary kitchen designed by the British architect John Prizeman in 1972. The kitchen detaches itself from the house and moves around the garden on rails. Shaped like a flower, it rotates on its axis and its windows open like petals as it follows the sun. Prizeman’s clever choice of drawing materials helps to convey this narrative. The smooth tracing paper becomes the garden and the kitchen whizzes across the surface as effortlessly as his felt-tip pen. The flower kitchen reflects both the ‘flower power’ culture of the period and the decorative style of early Victorian conservatories. A kitchen based on this design was manufactured as a one-off project by the American company Westinghouse Domestic Appliances.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleSketch for Flower Kitchen (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Felt tip pen on tracing paper
Brief description
Design drawing in felt-tip pen for a mobile kitchen in the shape of a flower, by John Prizeman in conjunction with Westinghouse Domestic Appliances, 1972.
Physical description
Drawing in felt-tip pen on tracing paper with three views of a dome-shaped outdoor kitchen with petal-shaped windows. Inscribed with captions and dimensions. Title, signature and date inscribed at bottom right.
Dimensions
  • Height: 42cm
  • Width: 59.3cm
Production typeDesign
Marks and inscriptions
SKETCH FOR/ FLOWER/ KITCHEN/ 12th December 1972/ J B Prizeman. (Bottom right; Handwriting; Prizeman)
Gallery label
(2005)
This sketch shows an extraordinary kitchen designed by the architect John Prizeman in 1972. The kitchen detaches itself from the house and moves around the garden on rails. Shaped like a flower, its windows open like petals as it follows the sun. The flower kitchen reflects both the 'flower power' culture of the period and the early Victorian conservatories. A kitchen based on this design was later manufactured as a one-off project.
Credit line
Given by the artist
Object history
John Prizeman designed this kitchen in conjunction with Westinghouse Domestic Appliances. The design was inspired by early Victorian decorative conservatories. The kitchen was a mobile unit which could detach itself from the house and travel about the garden on rails, revolving on its axis and opening its 'petals' to make best use of the sun. An example of the kitchen was manufactured for a client.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This sketch shows the first ideas for an extraordinary kitchen designed by the British architect John Prizeman in 1972. The kitchen detaches itself from the house and moves around the garden on rails. Shaped like a flower, it rotates on its axis and its windows open like petals as it follows the sun. Prizeman’s clever choice of drawing materials helps to convey this narrative. The smooth tracing paper becomes the garden and the kitchen whizzes across the surface as effortlessly as his felt-tip pen. The flower kitchen reflects both the ‘flower power’ culture of the period and the decorative style of early Victorian conservatories. A kitchen based on this design was manufactured as a one-off project by the American company Westinghouse Domestic Appliances.
Collection
Accession number
E.1142-1979

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Record createdNovember 22, 2003
Record URL
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