Celebrating the life and career of George Biles: King of Signwriters If you can get to Bridport, Dorset, this August, then you are in for a very special treat. George Biles: King of Signwriters is a retrospective exhibition about this prolific local sign painter, including a significant portion of his work for the local Palmers Brewery. The exhibition has been brought together by Jemma Thompson with support from Palmers Brewery, Bridport Town Council, and a grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. It is set across multiple sites and examines Biles' process in addition to numerous examples of his diverse output. I have been keenly following developments, and was curious to learn more about Biles' life story, which has resulted in the following brief biography: Frederick George Eveleigh Biles was born on July 1st, 1900. His father was FredAhead of a special exhibition for prolific local sign painter, George Biles, in Bridport, Dorset throughout August, Sam Roberts looks over the life and almost 70-year career of Biles including some of his notable jobs ▲ George Biles working on a Welcome to Bridport sign. Colin Granger, who was there when this photo was taken, recalls that Biles hadn't painted the word 'to' when the photographer arrived. As a temporary solution, he simply stuck a piece of paper onto the board for the shoot. Photo courtesy of Ken Allen's George Biles photo album Sam Roberts is the editor and publisher of BLAG (Better Letters Magazine), the world's only print and online publication dedicated to sign painting. He has written numerous books and articles on the craft and its history, and first became interested in the topic via the fading ‘ghost’ signs around London. SignLink subscribers can sign up with a special discount to the publication via bl.ag/signlink. Find more about Roberts and his work via: bl.ag ghostsigns.co.uk erick Biles, a groom, and his mother was Susanna Jerred Eveleigh Biles. He was married in 1926 to Hilda May Kirk (latterly Hilda May Biles), and worked as a signwriter, pictorial artist, decorator, calligrapher and illuminator for his whole life. Biles began his apprenticeship in 1914 at Barrett & Son, a firm of painters, glaziers, house decorators, carvers, gilders, and picture dealers. The firm was run by Frederick Barrett, and later his son Phillip Frederick Barrett, at 50 East Street in Bridport. Biles continued to work with Barrett & Son until the 1920s, but by 1924 he was running a business in partnership with ADVENTURES IN SIGN PAINTING WITH SAM ROBERTS The local Palmers Brewery was a client of Biles’ for most of his nearly 70-year career. He had other breweries on his books, but his work for Palmers is remarkable in that many of the swing signs he painted have been kept by the brewery 44 Issue 254 - August / September 2024 www.signlink.co.uk
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