John Ernest

John Ernest Maquette for relief mural at IUA congress 1961

John Ernest (1922-1994) was an American born artist working in England from 1951. As a mature student at St Martin's School of Art he came under the influence of Victor Pasmore and other proponents of constructivism. During the 1950s together with Anthony Hill, Kenneth Martin, Mary Martin, Stephen Gilbert and Gillian Wise he became a key member of the British constructivist (aka constructionist) art movement.

John Ernest created both reliefs and free standing constructions. Several of his works are held at Tate Britain, including the Moebius Strip sculpture [1] . He designed both a tower and a large wall relief at the International Union of Architects congress, South Bank, London, 1961. The exhibition structure also housed works by several of the other British constructivists.

John Ernest had a lifelong fascination with mathematics that is reflected in his work, and together with his colleague Anthony Hill he made minor contributions to graph theory (crossing number).

An excellent summary of John Ernest's life and work, together with that of the other British constructivists is given in Alastair Grieve's book of 2005.

Six of his works are included in A Rational Aesthetic, a show of constructivist and systems art at Southhampton City Art Gallery, January 10 to March 30, 2008.

References

• Grieve, Alastair Constructed Abstract Art in England After the Second World War: A Neglected Avant Garde, Yale University Press. 2005. ISBN 978-0-300-10703-6.