Born in 1917, John Minton was a painter, stage designer and teacher, most well known for his work in illustration. He was prolific, with a distinctive style that was highly innovative and modernist, while retaining an emphasis on figurative qualities and narrative.
Minton studied at St John's Wood School of Art, where he became friends with Michael Ayrton, with whom he went on to work closely. He joined the Pioneer Corps in the Second World War, but was soon discharged for medical reasons. During this time, he worked with Ayrton on the costumes and scenery for John Gielgud's production of Macbeth.
Although best remembered for his illustrations, he also produced oil paintings on a large scale, along with atmospheric street scenes and interiors that favoured a dark, evocative colour scheme and a bold sense of line. The current painting belongs to this latter strand of Minton's work.
Despite his early popularity, Minton had become marginalised by the 1950s. Tragically, he took his own life in 1957 at the age of 39. In the intervening years, however, there has been a great resurgence of interest in his work and the entirely unique, richly detailed vision it conveys.
