Born in Worcester, Ronald Lampitt (1906-1988) was a painter, poster designer, book and magazine illustrator and children’s author. In doing research about his output for this post, I discovered that he created material for Brock’s Fireworks – who we featured here on the blog many moons ago.
Lampitt’s periodical work included illustrations for Readers’ Digest, Zoo, Passing Show, Modern Wonder, John Bull, Look and Learn, Treasure and Mickey Mouse Weekly.
Ronald Lampitt also illustrated books for Oxford University Press and, most memorably, Ladybird Books. Titles for the latter included Understanding Maps (1967), Birds and how they Live, Plants and how they Grow, Animals and how they Live and Insects and Small Animals.
Many of these books were in collaboration with his brother-in-law, Henry James Deverson (Lampitt was married to Deverson’s sister, Mona). The two men collaborated on a number of children’s books, including The Map that Came to Life (1948, Oxford University Press), The Open Road (1962) and The Story of Bread (1964, Puffin Books).
His other association with Deverson included working on the Mainly for Children series that was published by the Sunday Times during the early 1960s.
He both authored and illustrated the children’s book, The Story of Paint, in 1962.
His advertising poster design were commissioned and produced by British Railways, Great Western Railway, London Midland & Scottish Railway, Southern Railway and Brooke Bond tea.
Find vintage copies of books that he illustrated on Abe Books and Amazon.
Michael Meister is a Swiss illustrator. In the early 1980s, he studied graphic design in Bern, initially working freelance for museums, advertising agencies, newspapers and magazines.
He has lived and worked throughout Europe being employed by companies such as Daimler-Chrysler, then over to New York where he remained for a few years. Currently, he lives with his family near Basel in Switzerland.
Michael has created illustrations for clients internationally; these include the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Nestlé and Deutsche Bahn.
A selection of his work is available on his website.
Next week is the Graphic Design Featuring London Underground Posters auction. The sale takes place at Antikbar, Kings Road, London on Saturday 19th March 2022, starting at 2pm.
There will be 251 lots of authentic, vintage advertising posters coming under the hammer. 100 of them being original London Underground posters from the 1920s-1930s.
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Lot 7: Original vintage London Transport poster – Summer Garlands on Hedge and Thicket
Original vintage London Transport poster – Summer Garlands on Hedge and Thicket. Design by Walter E. Spradbery (1889-1969) taken from a lino-cut featuring convolvulus flowers. London transport on bottom right corner. Very good condition, creasing, minor staining. Country of issue: UK, designer: Walter E Spradbery, size (cm): 25.5×31, year of printing: 1936.
Estimate: £240 – £480
Lot 27: Original vintage London Transport poster for the Kennel Club Show
Estimate: £375 – £750
Original vintage London Transport poster for the Kennel Club Show that took place between December 7 and 8 1938 at Olympia – Design by the notable artists Tom Eckersley (1914-1997) and Eric Lombers (1914-1978) features a white dog with a red collar on a lead. London transport logo in bottom right corner. The Kennel Club is the official kennel club of the United Kingdom and is the oldest recognised kennel club in the world. Printed by Baynard Press, London. Excellent condition, letter G posted over. Country of issue: UK, designer: Eckersley-Lombers, size (cm): 25.5×32, year of printing: 1938.
Estimate: £240 – £480
Lot 63: Original vintage London Transport poster advertising the Presentation of Colours by H.M the King
Original vintage London Transport poster advertising the Presentation of Colours by H.M the King – Event took place on July 16 1936 at Hyde Park – Design by Dora Batty (1891-1966) features Royal Guards wearing the traditional red uniform and bearskin hats down on one knee and holding flags up for the ceremony. London Transport logo in bottom right. The Presentation of Colours is a ceremony pioneered by the British Armed Forces that marks an anniversary or event in the history of a particular regiment. Good condition, tears, creasing. Country of issue: UK, designer: Dora Batty, size (cm): 25.5×32, year of printing: 1936.
Estimate: £300 – £600
Lot 100: Original vintage London Transport poster for London Zoo Giant Panda
Original vintage London Transport poster for London Zoo Giant Panda. Design by Clifford Ellis (1907-1985) and Rosemary Ellis (1910-1998) features an adorable illustration of Ming, the giant panda, laying down portrayed against blue and white background. Printed by the Dangerfield Printing Company Ltd. London Transport logo in the top right corner. Excellent condition. Country of issue: UK, designer: Clifford Ellis and Rosemary Ellis, size (cm): 25.5×32, year of printing: 1939.
Estimate: £300 – £600
Lot 157: Original vintage magazine Soviet Photo / Sovetskoye Foto
Rare first issue of the original vintage magazine Soviet Photo / Sovetskoye Foto, No 1 1926, monthly magazine dedicated to amateur photography and photo reporting. The cover of the magazine features two silhouettes in yellow and light cream with their arms wide open set over black background, with red and black bold title text. The magazine presents various articles – ‘Our Culture and Photography’ by Lunacharsky, ‘How we photographed Lenin’ by L. Leonidov, a feature article on how to photograph for magazines and newspapers, Bromoil pigmentation with examples of an academic scientist B. Bekhterev and poet V. Mayakovsky, success of Soviet photographers works presented abroad, foreign novelties, advice on camera use, April Fools photo curiosity of a giant lion on Moscow streets; with various advertising for photo paper and photo salons; with photographs of A. Shayhet, depicting Leningrad spring, dragonfly. 31 pages. Poor condition, pencil and ink marks, stamp on the cover, scuffed spine, loose cover, loose pages, paper loss on pages. Country of issue: Russia, designer: Various, size (cm): 25×17, year of printing: 1926.
Estimate: £180 – £360
Lot 213: Original vintage public safety poster published by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents ROSPA
Original vintage public safety poster published by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA) showing someone locking away bottles of medicine into a cabinet on a wall, the warning text above the hand holding the key in the lock and below: Lock away dangers in your home Medicines Tablets Cleansers. Printed by Loxley Bros Ltd. Good condition, small restored tears in margins, minor creasing in margins. Country of issue: UK, designer: Leonard Cusden, size (cm): 75×50, year of printing: 1950s.
Estimate: £90 – £180
Lot 217: Original vintage travel poster for Lufthansa
Original vintage travel poster for Lufthansa featuring a colourful mid-century design depicting lines and shapes of an old city entrance with a book on the side, the title text and logo in white below. Formed in 1926, Deutsche Luft Hansa A.G. became Deutsche Lufthansa in 1933; the company’s crane logo was designed by Otto Firle in 1918. Excellent condition. Country of issue: Germany, designer: Hans Rott, size (cm): 101×63, year of printing: 1960s.
Estimate: £120 – £240
Lot 241: Original vintage advertising poster for the Creative Playthings educational toy shop
Original vintage advertising poster for the Creative Playthings educational toy shop in Manhattan New York featuring a fun and colourful graphic design by the South African toymaker and illustrator Fredun Shapur (b. 1929), showing a child in green dungarees and a white shirt kneeling on the ground and dipping a paintbrush onto a paint palette with contains yellow, red and blue paint on it, against a red background. One of a series of ten posters illustrating the different forms of play – dramatic, active, social etc. – and the products available in the store (opened 1945), also used for wrapping paper and in the company catalogue. Very good condition, minor creasing. Country of issue: USA, designer: Fredun Shapur, size (cm): 97×64, year of printing: 1971.
Estimate: £120 – £240
Lot 247: Original vintage advertising poster – Friends Melodies
Original vintage advertising poster for an international pop music programme of artists of socialist countries – Friends Melodies 1977 – featuring a bright and colourful psychedelic style design with cloud like shapes around the bold cursive white title lettering in the centre decorated with a small white and blue flower against the red background. Organised by the State Concert of the Soviet State Countries. Horizontal. Good condition, tears, creasing. Country of issue: Russia, designer: V. Vair, size (cm): 58×87, year of printing: 1977.
Estimate: £120 – £240
Health & safety is a necessary but mundane topic. It takes a talented designer to create interesting and eye-catching educational materials in the subject. Frederic H K Henrion was one such person, Robert P. Gersin was another.
We’ve brought together a number of the posters he designed in the 1970s for the National Fire Protection Association – and another – a ‘Plan for New York City’ for the Department of City Planning. They’re all in the possession of the Cooper Hewitt Collection, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York.
I was unable to find any other work credited to Robert P. Gersin as an individual, although I found evidence of logo and branding (e.g. Simon Enterprises, Hackensack Medical Center and the Jamaican government) created by the organisation he founded.
Unfortunately, at the time of writing, none of his designs were available to purchase. In addition, not a lot could be found about the man himself except for this short obituary below:
Robert P. Gersin, an award-winning industrial designer, died of cancer Wednesday at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan. He was 60 years old and lived in Manhattan.
Mr. Gersin, a graduate of the Massachusetts College of Art and the Cranbrook Academy of Art, gained an international reputation through Robert P. Gersin Associates Inc., a company he started in 1959.
He received more than 350 awards for a wide range of designs, including interiors, products and corporate identity programs. In 1984 the company designed the logotype and corporate identity program for Sears, Roebuck & Company, and in 1988 it designed the interior for Casual Corner stores.
Mr. Gersin is survived by his wife, Ingrid; his mother, Belle, of Milton, Mass., and a brother, Barry, of North Cambridge, Mass.
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