Ian Breakwell
Ian Breakwell (26 May 1943 – 14 October 2005) was a British artist, active as a diarist, a draughtsman, a film-maker, a painter, a photographer and a print-maker.
Ian Breakwell
- Born
- 1943 · Long Eaton.
- Died
- 2005 · London.
- Nationality
- United Kingdom
- Occupation
- painter · photographer · writer · draftsperson · graphic artist · performance artist · video artist · multimedia artist
- Movements
- contemporary art
- Languages
- English
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Ian Breakwell (26 May 1943 – 14 October 2005) was a British artist, active as a diarist, a draughtsman, a film-maker, a painter, a photographer and a print-maker.
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wikidata · Q5980984 · wikipedia · Ian Breakwell
In this article
Life
Life
Breakwell was born on 26 May 1943 in Long Eaton, in Derbyshire. From 1961 to 1965 he attended the Derby College of Art, and then moved to London.
Work
Work
Breakwell was part of the Artist Placement Group in the 1970s, and was for a time placed in the Department of Health and Social Security. He was sent to work in the psychiatric hospitals of Broadmoor in Berkshire and Rampton in Nottinghamshire; his film The Institution, made in 1978 with Kevin Coyne, is based on these experiences. He died in London on 14 October 2005. The Tate Archive holds a collection of his personal papers, correspondence, photographs and notebooks including documentation of 'The Institution' performances with Kevin Coyne.
Exhibitions
Exhibitions
Breakwell's principal exhibitions include: • Evidence. Greenwich Theatre Art Gallery, London, 1973 • Continuous Diary (travelling exhibition). Arnolfini Gallery, Bristol, 1977 • Circus. Third Eye Centre, Glasgow, 1978 • 120 Days. Tate Gallery, London, 1982 • Echoes. Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 1988 • Free Range, Survey of Ian Breakwell's publications 1964-1993 (travelling exhibition). Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1993 • Drawing across Boundaries. Loughborough University School of Art and Design, 1998 • Textworks 1966-1999. Loughborough University Gallery, 1999 • The Other Side. The De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea, 2002 • Ian Breakwell: the Elusive State of Happiness (retrospective). Quad Gallery, Derby, 2010 • Ian Breakwell: Keep Things As They Are (retrospective). De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea, 6 October 2012 – 13 January 2013.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1943
Ian Breakwell born at Long Eaton.
2005
Ian Breakwell died at London.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Long Eaton.
Birth place
London.
Death place
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Ian Breakwell”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q5980984: Ian Breakwell
General reference · Wikidata
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Tate. The Institution, collection owner: Ian Breakwell, [c.1971–2001] – Tate Archive.
- 2.Ian Breakwell: Derby celebrates homegrown artist. The Guardian. 2010-02-15. 0261-3077.
- 3.The Elusive State of Happiness - Ian Breakwell. www.derbyquad.co.uk.
- 4.The Elusive State of Happiness Arts Council Collection. artscouncilcollection.org.uk.
- 5.Breakwell, Ian. Benezit Dictionary of Artists. Oxford: Oxford University Press. . .
- 6.Ian Breakwell: Keep Things As They Are. Bexhill On Sea: De La Warr Pavilion. Archived 24 November 2012.
- 7.Nick Kimberley (21 October 2005). Obituary: Ian Breakwell. The Guardian. Accessed November 2024.
References
Citations
References
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reference work
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General reference
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
Ian Breakwell is recorded as painter, photographer, writer, draftsperson and graphic artist.
Recognition and collections
Work by Ian Breakwell is
Tate, Museum of Modern Art, CODA Museum and Arts Council Collection, Southbank Centre
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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