F Gregory Brown

Frederic Gregory Brown RBA (4 January 1887- 5 March 1941) was an English artist and designer. A founding member of the Design and Industries Association, he is best known for his advertising posters for the London Underground. He signed his works F Gregory Brown or Gregory Brown. His use of flat colour in his posters made him a big influencer on artists of his generation.

History Brown was born in Islington on 4 January 1887. His father was the art master John Terrell Brown, and he initially completed an apprenticeship in metal work when he left school. After completing his apprenticeship he started out by making art metalwork, and in 1915 he was a founding member of the Design and Industries Association.

In 1914, Gregory started to design posters for London Underground, which he continued to do until 1940 In 1922, he was commissioned to produce an artwork for Queen Mary's Dolls' House. Brown further expanded his clientele by working with businesses such as the Empire marketing board, National Railway Companies, ICI, Witney Blankets and department stores Bobby & Co. and Derry & Toms.

Brown died in Finsbury on 5 March 1941.

Awards and recognition Brown was elected as a member of the Royal Society of British Artists in 1913. In 1923, Brown won a diploma at the Milan International Exhibition, while in 1925, he won Gold Medal at the Paris Exhibition of Decorative Arts for his textile design created for William Foxton.

The National Portrait Gallery has a number of photographic portraits of Brown, all taken by Howard Coster in 1927.

His artwork and fabric designs are held in the United Kingdom within the collections of the London Transport Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum the British Council, the National Rail Museum, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the British Museum. Externally to the United Kingdom, Browns work are included in the collections at the Art Institute of Chicago.