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Garth England's Bristol: Drawing a line through the 20th century

Garth England was a milkman in Bristol in the post-war years. In his latter years he made drawings of the streets and buildings he knew so well...

Greenleaze to Redcatch Road © Bristol Archives

Paperboy, telegram deliverer, milkman… Few knew the 20th century streets of Bristol better than Garth England. Living in a care home in 2005, he began to draw the houses and streets he used to know through remarkably meticulous memories of places, some long gone.

Clear and concise, the drawings are often annotated by England’s personal memories (skidding down icy streets delivering milk) or social comment (the building of prefabs and local authority housing).

His work captures a poignant time of social and architectural change in post-war Britain, and 30 pieces have gone on display for the first time.

Murdered with Straight Lines: Drawings of Bristol by Garth England runs until September 10, The Architecture Centre, Bristol BS1

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