James Lucas (illustrator)

James Lucas (fl. 1930s) was a British illustrator and teacher, affiliated with the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB).[1]

James Lucas
NationalityBritish
Occupations
Years active1930s
OrganizationCommunist Party of Great Britain
SpousePhyllis Ladyman

Lucas did not sign much of his work, making attribution difficult.[1]

He designed a banner for the British Battalion of the International Brigades, on behalf of the Artists International.[2][3] Phyllis Ladyman, his wife and also an illustrator, oversaw its embroidering.[2] The banner's poles had metal finials by the sculptor Betty Rea.[2] It was presented to the battalion by Harry Pollitt at Christmas 1937.[2] When that banner was captured, he designed its replacement.[1] The replacement banner was shown as part of the Conscience and Conflict: British Artists and the Spanish Civil War exhibition at the Pallant House Gallery in 2015.[3]

He is also known for his engraving for the cover of early editions of The Country Standard.[1] He illustrated a 1947 edition of Ronald M. Lockley's I Know an Island.

He taught at Plymouth, where one of his pupils was Reg Turner, another CPGB affiliate.[1]

Dave Cope recalled him as "modest" and the "most political" among his artistic CPGB peers.[1]

References
  1. Cope, Dave. "Artists and the CP". CPGB Bibliography. Barry Amiel and Norman Melburn Trust. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  2. Alexander, Bill (February 2017). "High Fly the Banners" (PDF). IBMT Magazine (45): 9.
  3. "Exhibition Review: Conscience and Conflict: British Artists and the Spanish civil war". Morning Star. 24 November 2014. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
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