Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
General material designation
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
Level of description
Reference code
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
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1914-1967 (Creation)
Physical description area
Physical description
1.42 m of textual and graphic materials
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Arthur Eric Rowton Gill (22 February 1882-17 November 1940) was born in Steyning, Sussex, England. He attended the Chichester Technical and Art School and later moved to London to study to become an architect. While there he took courses in stonemasonry and calligraphy with the Westminster Technical Institute and the Central School of Arts and Crafts. In 1903 he left the architectural profession to focus on calligraphy, letter-cutting and monumental masonry.
Gill's first success as a sculptor came in 1912 while he was living at Sopers in Ditchling, Sussex with his wife Ethel Hester Moore (1878-1961). Gill and Moore had married in 1904 and moved to Sopers in 1907. In 1913 Gill moved to Hopkin's Crank at Ditchling Commonand later that year Gill was commissioned to sculpt the Stations of the Cross in Westminster Cathedral.
After the First World War, Gill along with Hilary Pepler and Desmond Chute established The Guild of St. Joseph and St. Dominic, an artist's commune at Ditchling. Over the next ten years over forty people would come to live and work on the Common, which was grounded in Roman Catholic beliefs. During this time Gill and Mary had three girls, Petra , Joan and Betty and adopted one son, Gordian.
By 1924 Gill had moved to Capel-y-ffin, Wales where he established a new workshop. It was here that his work in typeface began, and in 1927 he cut Gill Sans, his most famous typeface.
In 1928 Gill wanted to move closer to London to be near his clients and moved to Pigotts at Speen in Buckinghamshire. From here he carved sculptures for the London Electric Railway, Marlborough College, Queen Mary College and the BBC's Broadcasting House.
Gill's other works include designing the first George VI stamp series for the Post Office and produced a bas relief for the League of Nations building in Geneva. He was also made Royal Designed for Industry and was a founding member of the Faculty of Royal Designers for Industry.
Throughout his career Gill also worked in woodblock cuts and created commissions for a number of personal clients as well as for private press editions.
Gill also founded or partnered in a number of presses, including Hague and Gill with his son-in-law Rene Hague and Saint Dominic's Press with others at The Guild of St. Joseph and St. Dominic. He was also heavily involved with Nonesuch Press and Golden Cockerel Press, providing prints for many of their works.
Gill died of lung cancer in 1940.
Custodial history
Scope and content
Contents: collection is comprised of materials created and accumulated by Eric Gill, as well as materials created and accumulated pothumously relating to Gill's life or by various presses in which he was involved. Includes a large collection of Gill prints and original drawings, as well as materials created by and relating to various presses with which Gill was involved or owned. Arranged in series as follows: Series 1. Gill, Eric and Family; Series 2. Prints; Series 3. Other Art; Series 4. Golden Cockerel Press; Series 5. Hague and Gill; Series 6. Nonesuch Press; Series 7. St Dominic's Press; Series 8. Ephemera; Series 9. Artifacts.
Notes area
Physical condition
Materials are being stored flat.
Immediate source of acquisition
Purchased in pieces, primarily in the 1970's from various book dealers. Detailed acquisition notes can be found at the file level.
Arrangement
Series are arranged by material, then alphabetically.
Language of material
- English
- Latin
Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Finding aids
Detailed finding aid available.
Associated materials
Gill's papers and library can be found at William Andrews Clark Memorial Library at UCLA. Related records can be found in GA 240, the Private Press Collection.