The York Civic Trust has unveiled a plaque honoring sculptor Austin Wright.
Wright was a significant figure in the development of sculpture from the 1940s onwards. The blue plaque-whose unveiling was marked with festivities-was installed on his house in Upper Poppleton, commemorating his work as an artist "whose personal and professional lives were deeply intertwined with the city of York."
Born in Chester in 1911, Wright spent his childhood in Cardiff before moving to Yorkshire in 1937. He initially trained as a teacher, and taught painting, sculpture, French and German at Bootham School, The Mount School and York Art School before becoming a fulltime artist in 1954.
The following year, he was invited to exhibit for the show, 'Young British Sculptors,' mounted by the British Arts Council.
Initially working with wood, Wright shifted to aluminum in the 1960s, commenting that the pliable metal "projects its lightness. It speaks out to any form of light in the sky. Come out into the garden and it chirps in a startling way."
He became one of the first featured artists of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park at its establishment in 1977. That same year, he received an honorary degree from the University of York, whose grounds now display three of his works-a rarity, "as some of Austin's works were stolen and sold for scrap, including possibly his sculpture Two Rings which sat on Roppa Moor above Helmsley," according to the York Civic Trust.
Duncan Marks, an author at the Trust, remarked: "It's wonderful to be able to recognise an artist such as Austin Wright, who chose to live in and be inspired by York, and Poppleton in particular. He could have gone to a much bigger cultural centre, such as London, and made a bigger name for himself, but was utterly charmed by his adopted city, York. The blue plaque is a small way of saying thank you to him."
