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Allen Jones

1 of 13 portraits of Allen Jones

© Allen Jones / National Portrait Gallery, London

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Allen Jones

by Allen Jones
oil on canvas, 1959-1960
12 1/8 in. x 12 1/8 in. (308 mm x 308 mm)
Purchased, 1986
Primary Collection
NPG 5911

Sitterback to top

  • Allen Jones (1937-), Artist. Sitter in 13 portraits, Artist or producer of 3 portraits.

Artistback to top

  • Allen Jones (1937-), Artist. Artist or producer of 3 portraits, Sitter in 13 portraits.

This portraitback to top

This self-portrait was painted while Jones was a student at Hornsey College of Art. It is highly abstracted, using colour and simplified shapes to convey a sense of non-naturalistic presence.

Linked publicationsback to top

Events of 1959back to top

Current affairs

Harold Macmillan wins the general election with an increased majority, returning to office as Conservative prime minister. The victory was the result of perceived economic improvement under the Conservative government, and his (misquoted) boast: 'you've never had it so good.' During his premiership he earned the nickname 'Supermac', coined by cartoonist, Victor 'Vicky' Weisz.

Art and science

Claudia Jones organises the first West Indian-style carnival in the country, starting the tradition of the annual Notting Hill carnival. The event was a response to the race riots of 1958, and an attempt to celebrate West Indian culture and help overcome racial prejudice by giving the whole community the opportunity to join in the event.

International

Fidel Castro becomes leader of Cuba. After defeating the American-backed Batista government, Castro's revolutionary army arrived in Havana on 8th January where Castro proclaimed himself Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. Within a month, Prime Minister José Miró Cardona had resigned, and Castro took over.
In Tibet, an uprising against Chinese rule is brutally crushed, and the Dalai Lama flees to India, beginning his long exile.

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