Andrew Lanyon is a painter, publisher, author, and film-maker.
Born in St. Ives in 1947, he was brought up in West Cornwall
but only saw the light when he became a pataphysician recently
though he does not know what it is.
Now a renowned comic author following the publication of
his best seller A Fairy Find available from Portobello Books
and his pataphysical masterpiece Circular Walks Around Rowley
Hall available from Atlas Press. His work is in public and
private collections including the Victoria and Albert Collection,
London and the Museum of Modern Art, New York. He has published
over thirty of his books and films.
From 1966 - 1968 he studied at the London School of Film
Technique; during this time Andrew co-organised the Durham
Surrealist Festival and produced the catalogue. He spent
several years as a freelance photographer, at the same time,
co-producing the Casual Eye, an exhibition about snapshots
for Northern Arts. He was also assistant editor for Ambit
poetry magazine.
In 1976 He constructed The Rooks of Trelawne - a major
touring exhibition for the Photographers Gallery (London),
accompanied by a book. Part of the exhibition is still housed
in the St. Ives Museum. This was followed by another book
and touring exhibition, The Vanishing Cabinet.
In 1987 Andrew began to publish his own books, the first
being Deadpan.
During the mid nineties, Andrew turned his attention back
to film, bringing life to the characters in his books. The
first film to be released was Splatt dhe Wertha (Plot for
Sale), a Cornish language film directed by Bill Scott. It
won the Golden Torc award at the 18th Celtic Film Festival
in 1997.
His films include ‘Laughing Gas’, ‘Badly
Parked Car’ and ‘Fairy Questions Answered’
all written and directed by fairies.
Andrew’s studio is in a polytunnel at his home near
Helston in Cornwall. The polytunnel provides excellent diffuse
natural light for working in, as well as being a warm and
dry place used on social occasions. From this space, Andrew
has not only created his own work, but also books on his
father; Peter Lanyon’s work, Alfred Wallis and other
well known painters, sculptors and poets.
For over thirty years Andrew has been painting pataphysically
without realising it.
