Sybil & Cyril: Cutting through Time

by Jenny Uglow

'A joy to read.' Sunday Times

'Outstanding.' Daily Telegraph

'Excellent.' The Spectator

'Superb.' Literary Review

'Scintillating . . . A gripping, mysterious love story which also sheds light on British culture between the wars.' Financial Times

In 1922, Cyril Power, a fifty-year-old architect, left his family to work with the twenty-four-year-old Sybil Andrews. They would be together for twenty years. Both became famous for their dynamic, modernist linocuts - streamlined, full of movement and brilliant colour, summing up the hectic interwar years.

Theirs was a scintillating world of Futurists, Surrealists and pioneering abstraction, but alongside the buzz of the new, of machines and speed, shops and sport and dance, they also looked back, to medieval myths and early music, to country ways disappearing from sight.

Genres: Art, Biography, Nonfiction, History

416 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2022

About the author

Jennifer Sheila Uglow OBE (née Crowther, born 1947) is a British biographer, critic and publisher. The editorial director of Chatto & Windus, she has written critically acclaimed biographies of Elizabeth Gaskell, William Hogarth, Thomas Bewick and the Lunar Society, among others, and has also compiled a women's biographical dictionary.

Reviews

[Chrissie Whitley · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

While Uglow chose an interesting set of subjects, and she has clearly done all the research humanely possible, her compilation of descriptions and timeline events reads like a textbook. The captured story of a potentially engrossing duo is delivered in an incredibly dry and monotonous tone to the whole of the book. I had the sneaking suspicion that Uglow would've rather have kept all the intimacy of a typical biography for herself, leaving none for the readers. I felt shoved out of the way at every turn, relegated to peering in through the glass at a lifeless diorama.

I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This affected neither my opinion of the book nor the content of my review.

[Clarisa Rucabado Butler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting look at the lives of an unlikely artistic duo, Sybil Andrews (Bury St Edmunds 1898-1992 Campbell River, Canada) and Cyril Power (London 1872-1951), whose rather striking, modernist linocuts have gone up in esteem as the years have passed.
Uglow's is a rather cold, factual account which at times reads as just the fleshed-up notes found in Sybil's diary (on which Cyril also made annotations). The matter-of-fact presentation nevertheless enhances how their artistic collaboration and personal relationship challenges assumptions in all sorts of ways (who had the power in their collaboration, how was this yielded, who made the key moves), presenting a rather compelling story of a strong-willed independent woman and a man who decided in his late forties to bypass a family of four children and architectural career, both intent in becoming artists and both spurring each other to actually make it. This is not a story about artist as genius, but as artist as a determined, quite normal, yet obviously creative individual who keeps trying to make her mark in a rather petit-bourgeoise manner, without grand gestures, keeping faith with the status quo yet rebelling on a number of key elements.
The narrative marries critical descriptions of the prints with the mundanity and apparent normalcy of their life (the weirdnesses, and there are many, are left for us to ponder, they are not analysed in depth, the author does not pretend to enter her protagonists' minds. By accumulation (at times I thought the text was a bit repetitive, but I suppose that most lives are!), Uglow presents a convincing account of their milieu and lives between the First and Second World Wars, bookends to their joint story. Yet, despite the title, I feel that this is in fact Sybil's story.
With many thanks to the publisher via NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this intriguing account of artistic endeavour.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’d never heard of artists Cyril Power and Sybil Andrews and I thoroughly enjoyed making their acquaintance in this comprehensive and well-researched, if rather workaday, dual biography. Jenny Uglow does a good job of exploring their lives and work, and includes many illustrations with expert commentary, but overall I found the narration somewhat bland and not very immersive. A worthy rather than an absorbing biography.

[Katy Wheatley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've loved the Lino prints of Sybil Andrews and Cyril Power for a long time and have always been bowled over by the economy of line and the sense of speed and fluidity they were able to convey in their work. Uglow's book is a great balance between the work and their lives and not just the things that influenced their work but the way they created it. Their work ethic was amazing and thanks to the vast body of work they left behind them, there is much to go on here, despite the fact that they destroyed the papers and letters they sent to each other. This doesn't ever feel thin or rushed. I appreciate that the book was about their work and life together but the last chapter on Sybil's life after Cyril's death was the only part of the book I wished there was more of, as her life in Canada and later fame sound fascinating, but this really should be an entire book in itself I suspect. Good pictures and good descriptions of key works for which there are no pictures, making them easy to visualise. I know I will refer back to this book and think about it when I look at the works again. A great perspective.

[Lachlan Finlayson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am grateful to NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is a substantial book of over 600 pages. I expected something relatively brief, perhaps a ‘coffee table’ book with some descriptive text and abundant colour reproduction of artwork. What the author has produced is essentially a biography of two artists who lived and worked closely together for decades beginning in the 1930s. They produced modern, futuristic artwork, capturing the mood of the times. Their work, relatively unappreciated at the time, has become much more popular and sought after in recent years.

Sybil Andrews grew up in small town England, experiencing the freedom given young women in supporting the war effort of WW I. Cyril Powers, more than 20 years her senior, was an architect and historian, with a wife and children. He also participated in the war effort at home, becoming captivated by the technology & power of the times while being appalled by the destruction brought to England.

The book tells their story in great detail; often sourcing from contemporaneous accounts captured in their diaries kept over many years, as well as media reviews and exhibition material. The background of post-war culture is described. A modern, future-looking culture, with new trends in many areas including art, music, fashion, transportation and architecture. Both had an amateur interest in art and they became close, moving to London to pursue careers as full-time artists.

The book captures their world and circle of friends in the art, music and cultural world of post-war London. Powers deserts his wife and children, essentially living and working with Andrews throughout the inter-war years and during WW II. They both draw and paint with various media while developing their own style. Modern, streamlined, somewhat abstract and in keeping with Art Deco styles becoming popular in Europe, the United States and throughout the world.

They achieve some modest success, especially with Lino-cut prints. This work by the couple and their contemporaries have become much admired and sought-after in recent years. The book explores their influences, exhibitions, collaborations, business ventures and other aspects of their very full lives.

The book captures in some detail their processes in creating art and the more mechanical processes in printing, reproduction and preparations for exhibitions. There are some monochrome reproductions of their works in the book, but no colour reproduction of their better known works. An internet search quickly displays many of the items of artwork discussed in the text.

The book follows their lives through the 1930s, up to and including WW II. Their lives diverge at this point. One of the couple, the younger Andrews , as you might expect, lives a much longer and interesting life.The elder Powers has a much quieter and shorter post-war existence.

For anyone interested in the UK artistic world of the between-the-wars period, this book will satisfy. In particular, anyone who enjoys the modern, dynamic prints popularised by Andrew & Powers and their contemporaries, this book will be great reading. Given their relative obscurity during much of their creative life, the detail captured in this book is quite surprising.

The author has done an excellent job of capturing the times, the thought process that created the art work and the mechanics of producing and reproducing the prints. Other aspects of Andrews and Powers life outside of their art are also captured in great detail. Family, friends, education, houses, homes, travel and business are all covered. Also captured are the background events to their lives. Changing times, cultures, society and lifestyles in the UK after World War I.

I wish the author and publishers all the very best with publication of this substantial and important book.

[Kerfe · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art produced by Cyril Power and Sybil Andrews is excellent. They were part of a groundbreaking revival of linocuts in the early 20th century that still influences design in the 21st. Uglow has provided a rich array of illustrations that reflect their wide-ranging subject matter and explorations. They also spent time with monoprinting, but were not commercially successful with it and eventual abandoned it, though the few examples shown are intriguing.

Because they worked closely together, each had a strong influence on the art produced by the other. Sybil, as a younger woman, was often given a secondary role, and seems to have done the monotonous but necessary work to keep them housed, fed, and organized.

I liked Sybil more than Cyril; when he abandoned his family to follow Sybil to London, he seems not to have considered the effect on his wife or children at all. Sybil also had an abundant family life with her mother and siblings that was independent of Cyril--her relationship with her eccentric brother, Hal, especially seemed to nurture and spur her spirit and creativity.

Were Cyril and Sybil in love? It never really felt as if they made a full commitment to a personal relationship--only to the work. I felt they always left their options open, investing deeply in the art they produced together but not in each other.

And, in fact, eventually Sybil did leave. She met someone that she fell in love with, and they quickly married. Perhaps at one time she hoped to become Cyril's wife, but it had long been obvious he would never fully leave his marriage and divorce his wife. And, in fact, after Sybil married, he returned to his family, who took him back in without judgement, although it sounded as though he was there in body only--his spirit was elsewhere, in his art.

It's hard to write about early 20th century art without including the history of a rapidly changing world at war, and Uglow does a good job of incorporating the constant turmoil into the story. I was, however, irritated at her insistence on referring to the couple by their last names. It kept them at a distance, which may be part of why I could never warm up to either of them, despite admiring the work they produced.

[Caroline Duggan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It perfectly blends the personal with the art, for a reader that wants to know the why and how of the artists' process and the impact their art had on the world around them. Uglow, with her expert hand in blending social history and biography, has triumphed with this beautiful book. The plates are exquisite and closely aligned with the parts of the text that discuss them. The sense of the artistic milieu and life in London over the 1920s and 1930s is vividly evoked. The way these artists fitted in to this scene and the way they changed things, and influenced others is really finely wrought. I was fascinated by the role these two famous printmakers had on the development of the early music scene in London, including the developing interest in the recorder. What a joy to discover this. And the constant to and fro in early twentieth century art between the urge to reflect on the speed and machine-age tropes of modernity, and the harking back to the world that existed before the first world war, its folklore and traditions...so true and so embodied by these particular artists who had lived and lost so much. It is rare to find a book that brings all this to life.

[Neil · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish I could use a more clever word, but this book was mostly boring.
Descriptions of linocuts, monotypes etc. are not interesting to me, although I am an artist myself. And there were a lot of these descriptions. I have a preference for the actual life story in biographies. When there was a straight life narrative it was ok. Following on from this, no one necessarily wants to live a crazy artist’s life, but these lives are interesting to read about. And unfortunately for my reading these two artists were quite dull.
The author was involved in editing as part of her career. The question she should have considered was, was there enough interest in these two artist’s lives to justify a book? Maybe a type of monograph would have been more appropriate. A tough read.

[Jan Vanderburg · Rating 3 out of 5]

A factual and very detailed account of the lives and relationship of 2 very talented British artists, Sybil Andrews (1898-1992) and Cyril Power (1872-1951) who drew and painted their way through life, documenting London, Paris, European villages and together produced linocuts that were so powerful and engaging that you want to return to them again and again. I'm grateful that many of them are quality reproductions in Uglow's book so I'll be able to. My only disappointment is that it reads like a history text, which it is, and so much information is distracting.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A new book by Jenny Uglow is always exciting. Always well-researched, judicious, and finely crafted. Uglow's research connects these lives to the rest of the cultural scene in illuminating ways. I especially enjoyed the Woolf references. (The "pirate" bus in Mrs. Dalloway was a real thing, not only a clever way of description.) The frame of the book, discovering the story behind prints that she grew up with, was endearing and engaging. Somehow the book dragged at a few points for me, though. I can't put my finger on why, maybe it just took me a while to appreciate Cyril.

3+

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting double biography of two Modernist English artists who specialised in linocuts and whose lives were intertwined from when they met in the early 1920s, Cyril Power leaving his family to live with or close to Sybil Andrews for many years. They were part of the Modernist movement in Britain and Jenny Uglow skillfully works their individual stories into a general cultural history of the 1920s - 1950s.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew some of the prints but nothing about the artists. A wonderful double biography but some parts of their story still missing.

[Amy Byers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book!! So interesting!!! Need more!!!

[Ruth Brumby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating exploration of lives and context and of relationships and art.
Occasionally too much detail about families.

[Olga Vannucci · Rating 5 out of 5]

Variously skilled and working hard,
They had a partnership 'round their art
For twenty years, then split apart.

[Carlton · Rating 4 out of 5]

For years, prints inherited from her parents hung in Uglow’s house, enjoyed but not actively considered. This book is a result of Uglow’s research into Cyril Power, who created The Eight print, and his partner for his most artistically productive years, Sybil Andrews, who made Bringing In the Boat.

By focusing on the story of two artists primarily remembered (if at all) for their linocuts, Uglow opens up the avant-garde artistic world in London between 1920 and 1940, most of which has now been forgotten. Uglow narrates the lives and describes the art of Sybil Andrews and Cyril Power, most active between 1925, when they formed part of the “Grosvenor School”, to 1938. I had heard of neither before reading this book, but have a general interest in the inter-war period, having read several social histories. This book enlarged my understanding of the period.
Initially providing twin biographies, the book starts slowly by alternating between Sybil’s and Cyril’s stories, building the lives of the two individuals prior to their meeting in 1919 when Sybil is twenty one and Cyril who is about 26 years older, has married, has four children, a struggling architectural career and has published a book on medieval architecture. Uglow manages this initial chronological unevenness by expanding upon Sybil’s ancestors in and around Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk.
Having worked as a teacher and learned about art as an amateur for about three years (conventional drawings and watercolours), being befriended by Cyril who informally taught her (and probably became her lover), Sybil moved to London in autumn 1922 to attend an Art School. Cyril follows in 1923, deserting his family (but not divorcing, as a Catholic), although he continued to provide some financial support.

Uglow describes London in 1923, the culture and the coming of modernity, the “Jazz Age”, after the austerity of the Great War and the immediate post-war period. This allows the book to also provide a social history of London, as Andrews and Power were interested in depicting modern social and sporting activities such as ice skating, motor racing and funfairs, as well as modern life in the form of mechanised workers and the London Underground (the “tube”), as shown in prints of the station platforms, escalators and trains.
However Andrews and Power must make a living, as well as create art, and so from 1925 with the encouragement of Claude Flight both teach art at the Grosvenor School of Modern Art, and sell linocut prints, to which they had been introduced by Flight. The description of the technical and artistic development of their linocut style, which they seem to have developed jointly, together with the subject matter and approach to sales is explored whilst interweaving their biographical stories and asides about their milieu.
In 1933 they held their first joint exhibition, displaying monotype prints, as well as their now well known linocuts. Monotypes seem a move back from the modernity of linocuts, and all Andrews’ monotype pictures were lost in a gallery warehouse fire, but Cattawade Bridge by Power looks more realistic, although the colouring is post-modern. (Uglow describes a monotype as “a curious creature – not a print, as it can’t be produced in multiples, and not a painting, as it is ‘printed’. In a way it is a reverse painting. Using printer’s ink or oils straight from the tube, ... painted directly onto a metal plate to get the tones and lights ... wanted.”)
Life is lived fully, and Uglow describes concert going, holidays, music making, which provide the inspiration for their art, as well as the work involved in printing and selling their art. An intense period of work and living to 1938, changes by fear of war and Andrews deciding that she no longer wants to live in London. A move to the New Forest by Andrews, with Power only visiting at weekends gradually changes their relationship, and war comes with Andrews working in a military boat building team, where she meets her future husband, and so Power leaves (returning to his wife after more than twenty years apart). This is dynamically and impressionistically described, with plenty of illustrations of the art described (black and white) and some photos.
There follows a brief description of Andrews and Power’s subsequent lives, with Power dying in 1951 and Power moving to the west coast of Canada with her husband, where making a living was hard until interest in the Grosvenor School arose in the 1970’s, and where she died in 1992.

The cover of my Faber edition is a mashup of Andrews’ Racers and Power’s The Escalator.

I received a Netgalley copy of this book, but this review is my honest opinion.
Postscript February 2022, I have bought the beautifully produced Faber hardback edition, which benefits from plenty of colour reproductions of the prints. Upon reflecting on how much I have thought back to this book in the intervening months, I have upped my rating to four and a half stars.