John Hurford

John Hurford (born 1948) is a prolific English psychedelic artistwho, during the 1960s, quickly became one of the realforces behind the British psychedelic art movement. Perhaps best known for the stunning range of artworkhe produced for Oz (magazine), Gandalf's Garden and International Times (IT), he is the only psychedelic artist of hisgeneration to contribute to all three of these influential underground publications.

John Hurford was born near Chulmleigh in Devon in 1948. The son of a farming family, John was immersed in rural Devon life as a child. He attended Chulmleigh Primary School and later Queen Elizabeth's School in Crediton as a boarder.

His early work (asmuch of it still is today) was crowded with flowers,birds and insects - highly detailed observations fromthe natural world he saw around him in the Devoncountryside where he lived. It was often coupled withfinely drawn Tolkienesque fantasy landscapes,people and mythical beings; goblin-like creatures werea favourite, as were naked girls. His psychedelicstyle of painting and the subjects he chose wereextremely influential - young people (especially thosewithin the emerging art school culture at the end ofthe 1960s) instantly related to it, and it sparked offa trend in itself when it first appeared.

External links

* [http://www.johnhurford.co.uk website]

References

Johnny - The Work of Psychedelic Artist John Hurford ISBN 0 9511448 9 8 Sunrise Press 2006