Skip navigation
Tate Logo
Shop
Become a Member

Main menu

  • Art and artists
    • Our collection
      Artists
      Artworks
      Art by theme
      Explore
      Videos
      Podcasts
      Short articles
      In depth
      Art Terms
      Tate Research
      Student resources
      Make art
      Create like an artist
      Kids art activities
      Tate Draw game
  • What's on
  • Plan your visit

Main menu additional

  • Shop
  • Become a Member
Expand
  • Art and Artists
  • Artists
  • John Piper

John Piper

1903–1992

Construction, Intersection 1934
© The Piper Estate
License this image

In Tate Britain

Historic and Modern British Art

In Tate Britain

Prints and Drawings Rooms

155 artworks by John Piper
View by Appointment

In Tate Britain

Library and Archive Reading Rooms

View by Appointment

Biography

John Egerton Christmas Piper CH (13 December 1903 – 28 June 1992) was an English painter, printmaker and designer of stained-glass windows and both opera and theatre sets. His work often focused on the British landscape, especially churches and monuments, and included tapestry designs, book jackets, screen-prints, photography, fabrics and ceramics. He was educated at Epsom College and trained at the Richmond School of Art followed by the Royal College of Art in London. He turned from abstraction early in his career, concentrating on a more naturalistic but distinctive approach, but often worked in several different styles throughout his career.

Piper was an official war artist in World War II and his wartime depictions of bomb-damaged churches and landmarks, most notably those of Coventry Cathedral, made Piper a household name and led to his work being acquired by several public collections. Piper collaborated with many others, including the poets John Betjeman and Geoffrey Grigson on the Shell Guides, the potter Geoffrey Eastop and the artist Ben Nicholson. In his later years, he produced many limited-edition prints.

This biography is from Wikipedia under an Attribution-ShareAlike Creative Commons License. Spotted a problem? Let us know.

Read full Wikipedia entry
Seven and Five Society Neo-romanticism Abstraction-Création 1 more art term …

Artworks

Left Right
  • John Piper Foliate Heads I

    1975
    View by appointment
  • John Piper Foliate Heads II

    1975
    View by appointment
  • John Piper Horham, Suffolk

    1975
    View by appointment
  • John Piper Kilmory Chapel, Argyll

    1975
    View by appointment
  • John Piper Kirkmaiden-in-Fernis

    1975
    View by appointment
  • John Piper Ruined Chapel, Isle of Mull

    1975
    View by appointment
  • John Piper Skeebost, Skye

    1975
    View by appointment
  • John Piper Castlemartin

    1976
    View by appointment
See all 183

Features

  • Tate Etc

    John Piper: Cut-and-Paste Landscapes

    Luke Piper

  • Tate Etc

    Opinion: 'Middlebrow' art

    Hana Leaper

Sketches, letters, etc.

  • John Piper Photograph of Allington Castle near Maidstone, Kent

    [c.1930s–1980s]
  • John Piper Photograph of the entrance to Townend Farm, Toad Lane Brampton-en-le-Morthen, Yorkshire

    [c.1930s–1980s]
  • Henry Moore OM, CH, recipient: Myfanwy Piper Letter from Henry Moore to Myfanwy Piper

    30 March 1954
    View by appointment
  • Henry Moore OM, CH ‘Some Notes on Space and Form in Sculpture’, ‘Sculptor’s Drawings’ and ‘Notes’ by Henry Moore

    1951
    View by appointment
See all 5872

Related art terms

Seven and Five Society Neo-Romanticism Abstraction-Création British War Art

In the shop

Browse the shop
Close

Join in

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
Sign up to emails

Sign up to emails

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Tate’s privacy policy

About

  • About us
  • Our collection
  • Terms and copyright
  • Governance
  • Picture library
  • ARTIST ROOMS
  • Tate Kids

Support

  • Tate Collective
  • Members
  • Patrons
  • Donate
  • Corporate
  • My account
  • Press
  • Jobs
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Cookies
  • Contact