Download this summary catalogue (PDF) ›BIRD, (Cyril) Kenneth (1887-1965), alias Fougasse

Identity statement

Reference code(s)

GB0100 KCLCA K/PP57

Title

BIRD, (Cyril) Kenneth (1887-1965), alias Fougasse

Date(s)

Created 1936-1949

Level of description

Collection (fonds)

Extent and medium of the unit of description (quantity, bulk, or size)

1 box or 0.01m3

Context

Name of creator(s)

Bird, (Cyril) Kenneth, 1887-1965, cartoonist and illustrator, called Fougasse

Administrative / Biographical history

Born 17 December 1887, London; educated at Farnborough Park School, Hampshire, 1898-1902, and Cheltenham College, 1902; studied engineering at King's College London, 1904-1908; attended evening art classes at the Regent Street Polytechnic and the School of Photo-Engraving and Lithography in Bolt Court, while at King's College London; graduated BSc in Civil Engineering, 1908, and qualified as AMICE (Associate Member of the Institute of Civil Engineers); worked at the naval dockyard at Rosyth, 1909; played rugby in the final international trials, 1913; applied for release from the dockyard to join the army (Royal Engineers), 1914; married Mary ('Mollie') Holden, an artist, 1914; blown up by a shell at Gallipoli, 1915, suffered a shattered back and could not walk for three years; his first drawing was accepted by the editor of Punch magazine in 1916, entitled 'War's Brutalising Influence' and was signed 'Fougasse' (a French mine which might or might not go off); contributed regularly to Punch , and started to publish his drawings in book form, as well as running a series of exhibitions and doing commercial work; Fellow of King's College London, 1936; Art Editor of Punch , 1937-1949, and Editor 1949-1953; Air-raid Warden in Kensington, from 1939; visited France at the request of the War Office, 1940, on his return he did over a thousand drawings and posters for various Ministries, on issues such as war propaganda and security (as an entirely unpaid honorary war job), creating illustrations and posters for the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force; member of the BBC Brains Trust; appointed CBE in 1946; died in London, 11 June 1965.

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Gift of a former student of King's College London.

Content & structure

Scope and content

Published books, 1936-1949, written or illustrated by Fougasse, mainly comprising books of cartoons and war propaganda posters used during World War Two, 1939-1945: You have been warned: a complete guide to the road with W D H McCullough (Methuen & Co, 8th edition, London, 1936); Drawing the line somewhere (Methuen & Co, London, 1937); Stop or go: a diary for 1939 (Methuen & Co, London, 1938); ...and the Gatepost (Chatto & Windus, London, 1940); The changing face of Britain (Methuen & Co, 3rd edition, London, 1941); Aces made easy with W D H McCullough (Methuen & Co, 3rd edition, London, 1941); The Little Less...and how much it is with Guy Reed (HMSO, London, 1941); The luck of the draw (Methuen & Co, 5th edition, London, 1942); Running commentary (Methuen & Co, 2nd edition, London, 1942); Sorry-no rubber (Methuen & Co, London, 1942); Just a few lines verses by Arthur W Bird, drawings by Fougasse (Methuen & Co, 2nd edition, London, 1944); Home circle (Methuen & Co, London, 1945); A school of purposes: a selection of Fougasse posters, 1939-1945 (Methuen & Co, London, 1946); You and me (Methuen & Co, London, 1948); Question-mark: a journey round the world by Donald McCullough, illustrated by Fougasse (Paul Elek, London, 1949).

System of arrangement

1 box

Conditions of access & use

Conditions governing access

Open, subject to signature of Reader's undertaking form, and appropriate provision of two forms of identification, to include one photographic ID.

Conditions governing reproduction

Copies, subject to the condition of the original, may be supplied for research use only. Requests to publish original material should be submitted to the Director of Archive Services, King's College, London.

Language/scripts of material

English

Finding aids

Collection level description.

Allied materials

Existence and location of originals

King's College London College Archives

Related units of description

King's College London Archives holds menu cards designed by Fougasse, for King's College London Engineering Society annual dinners, 1920-1963 (Ref: K/PRG6/47), and literature designed b Fougasse for King's College London's centenary in 1929.

Description control

Rules or conventions

Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal Place and Corporate Names 1997.

This catalogue is made available under the Open Data Commons Attribution License. This catalogue may be updated from time to time in order to reflect additional material and/or new understandings of the material.

Date(s) of descriptions

Feb 2000