Geoffrey Purser (fl. 1940s-1950s)

148.0000

Geoffrey Purser (fl. 1940s-1950s)

c. 1947–50

person

Jane Eckett

art student

Geoffrey Purser lived at the Abbey Art Centre while a student at the Sir John Cass Institute, c. 1947–49. According to fellow Cass student, Trata Maria Drescher, Purser had "been in the army and got the usual 2-year grant; there were a great many of them in that situation at the Cass (Sir John Cass Institute). The Cass was full of Poles. Geoff was unusual in that he wasn’t Polish!" (Trata Drescher, telephone interview with Jane Eckett, 23 Feb. 2021). Purser is recorded as still living at the Abbey in the electoral register for 1949. He is also seen in a photograph of residents sketching at the Abbey, including Noel Counihan, taken in the summer of 1950.

31 March 2023