Summer Show 6 [1971]: Old masters were young once

Artists in their prime were featured in the Serpentine’s sixth exhibition during the summer 1971 programme.

Following the exhibition title Old masters were young once was the strap line: John Benton-Harris – age 31, Jon Bird – age 25, George Hostler – age 31, Tony Ingram – age 28, Roy Naylor – age 23, Chris Orr – age 27, Gerard Wilson – age 27, Robert Tagg – age 27

For this exhibition, Roy Naylor, Tony Ingram, and George Hostler exhibited recent works on the Serpentine Gallery lawn. Ingram presented Landscape Curtain, Hostler showed Lawn Styling 1971 and Naylor presented LS 19b.

Inside the Gallery, John Benton-Harris was in the Print room, Chris Orr in the South Gallery, Jon Bird in the North Gallery, Gerard Wilson in the East Gallery, and Robert Tagg in the West Gallery.

Tagg displayed a series of paintings that “derive from photographs in a book on garden ornaments and a brochure on office furniture. I have tried to create a response between the images, and the method of presenting them side by side or one above the other is derived from visual layouts in books and magazines. The subject matter is as much concerned with certain methods of communication, such as photography and illustration, as it is with garden ornaments and office furniture.”