Opened on 4 May 1951, the Festival of Britain (FoB) ran successfully for five months across the United Kingdom. It gave visitors a taste of contemporary living and a vision of future innovation. It was also a morale boost in the aftermath of World War II. The Festival celebrated Britain’s achievements past, present and future. It embraced the arts, science, industrial design and technology. It also left an enduring legacy on design in Britain. The FoB spotlighted some of the UK’s rising stars in the field. These included Sir Hugh Casson, Peter Moro, Ernest Race, Robin and Lucienne Day, Philip Boydell. And not least Abram Games, the graphic artist responsible for many UK wartime propaganda posters. On the 70th anniversary of the Festival of Britain, Naomi Games gave an illustrated talk about her father Abram Games’s emblem design for the Festival of Britain. One of Britain’s foremost young designers, Abram Games won competitions to design a symbol for the Festival and its commemorative postage stamp. Naomi shared a personal view of her father’s working process (including progressive iterations for the iconic ‘Britannia’ emblem), other items he created for the Festival, as well as cartoons and curiosities.
About our speaker
Naomi Games is the daughter of Abram Games. She grew up watching her father work in his studio in the family home and became a graphic designer herself. She is the author and illustrator of nine books for children. Since her father’s death in 1996, she has managed his considerable archive, written six books, made a film, given lectures, and curated exhibitions about her father and his contemporaries.
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