The Frank Patterson Blog - Part Four
Hello, this is Caitlyn with some more Frank Patterson information. During the research process, Richard and I had decided it would be beneficial to visit other archives to build on our knowledge of Patterson. The Modern Records Centre at Warwick University is known to have a wealth of items related to Patterson, so we duly planned a visit. Before making the journey I researched what they had; I noticed that they had a collection of the Frank Patterson Appreciation Society Newsletter. This was amazing news as I have seen this publication referenced many times whilst trawling through information about Patterson. However, up until this point, we had no way of accessing the information within as the newsletter was no longer printed and the editor Gerry Moore had passed away.
In other exciting news, Richard has acquired Moore’s biography of Frank Patterson for the archive. It is a book chock full of information and beautiful images. Alongside the newsletter, the MRC listed many other things of interest for our research, so I compiled a list and sent it to the Centre ahead of our trip. We made a detour to a motoring library in the Midlands, in search of the elusive illustration in a 1907 copy of Motor. Unfortunately, it was not in the library’s copies; supplements can be very hard to locate, as they are easily removed from the magazines and would often be pinned to walls etc. At Warwick University we managed to photograph a lot of excellent Patterson material, and the whole run of the newsletter. We photographed as many pieces of original Patterson artwork as possible, but there were so many that another trip down is needed. Some of my favourite pieces of artwork were the greetings cards; these were such fun items, a little different from the standard countryside scenes. I have included a couple of examples of these to showcase their quirky nature. The best one, in my opinion, is the Christmas pudding riding the ‘Safety’.
I found these particularly thrilling as I remember databasing these images as they appeared on the front pages of the CTC Gazette. The ‘Pudding’ image was featured on the front page in December 1928.
It was also interesting to view these pieces as they were rougher versions, possibly auctioned off from the art department of the CTC Gazette, which meant that we could view examples of Patterson changing his mind and scribbling over an old design. This was a great insight into the inner workings of his creative process. The volume of Patterson resources at the Modern Records Centre is astronomical; we have agreed that another trip down there will be essential. For any Frank Patterson fan, a trip to this wonderful archive will not disappoint.
