Ben Uri Research Unit

Born: 1942 Hollywood, USA

Year of Migration to the UK: 1961

Biography

Artist Jann Haworth was born in Hollywood, USA, in 1942 to a creative family — her mother was a skilled seamstress, and her father, Ted Haworth, an Oscar-winning production designer. Growing up, she often accompanied her father to film sets, immersing herself in the artifice of cinema with its illusions, props, and theatricality. This unique upbringing shaped her artistic perspective, sparking a lifelong interest in the intersection of craft, popular culture, and storytelling. Her technical skills, honed through making her own clothes and understanding anatomy from pattern-making, became crucial to her artistic language, allowing her to transform flat materials into dynamic three-dimensional forms. The collaborative nature of filmmaking deeply influenced her understanding of art as both a narrative and collective process. In 1959, Haworth began her studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). In 1961, she moved to London for what was initially a brief stay while her father worked in France. Captivated by London’s vibrant cultural scene, she stayed and pursued History of Art at the Courtauld Institute of Art and Studio Art at the Slade School of Fine Art. At the Slade, Haworth encountered a male-dominated environment that challenged her to critique societal norms and explore her identity as a woman artist. This period galvanised her determination to carve out a space for herself in a field resistant to women’s perspectives, setting the stage for her innovative practice.

Haworth is widely recognised as a pioneer of soft sculpture, a medium she developed during this transformative period. She created life-sized three-dimensional forms from fabric—a material traditionally associated with domesticity and undervalued in fine art. Rejecting rigid, cold materials like bronze, she embraced cloth for its warmth, tactility, and impermanence, qualities she felt better reflected the essence of her subjects. Her use of sewing, rooted in childhood lessons from her mother, became a distinct artistic language that bridged craft and fine art. Works like Old Lady II (1967, National Galleries of Scotland) and Donuts, Coffee Cups, and Comic (1962, Wolverhampton Art Gallery) explore themes of still life and the domestic sphere through a feminist lens, challenging conventional hierarchies of artistic value.

Haworth’s work reflects transatlantic influences, blending American archetypes—such as surfers, cowboys, and cheerleaders—with British cultural contexts. Pieces like The Maid (1966, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis) and Mae West Dressing Table (1965, Pallant House Gallery) highlight her feminist critiques, subverting stereotypes while engaging viewers through playful, interactive designs. Inspired by Hollywood icon Mae West, the latter incorporated faux reflections and theatrical elements to challenge conventional depictions of femininity. Haworth's breakthrough came with the 1963 Young Contemporaries exhibition at the RBA Galleries in London, which led to representation by the influential Robert Fraser Gallery. Over the next decade, she participated in pivotal exhibitions, including Four Young Artists (1963) and The Obsessive Image (1968) at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA). In the same year her work featured in Pop Art at the Hayward Gallery, London. Her role in co-designing the iconic Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover for The Beatles in 1967, alongside her then-husband Peter Blake, cemented her place in pop art history. Haworth’s sculptural contributions blended British pop traditions with Californian countercultural influences, redefining the band’s image and cementing her reputation as a trailblazer.

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Haworth’s works garnered critical acclaim internationally. She exhibited widely and engaged in collaborative projects such as founding The Brotherhood of Ruralists in 1975, an artist collective that celebrated the idyllic aspects of rural life. Her practice also reflected theatrical influences, with many pieces presented in immersive ‘sets’ or staged environments inspired by her father’s production design work. These installations extended her sculptures into narratives, creating dialogue and interaction among the pieces while inviting viewers into imaginative worlds. Despite her achievements, Haworth's contributions were often overshadowed by her male peers in pop art, a disparity she actively sought to address by advocating for female representation in the arts. Humour played a pivotal role in her work, with playful metaphors, such as tartan donuts, serving as vehicles for subversion and critique, disrupting conventional expectations of art and culture.

In 1979, following her separation from Blake and a loss of gallery representation in England, Haworth returned to the United States. Settling in Utah, she dedicated herself to teaching and community arts projects. Her practice expanded to include large-scale murals and collaborative works involving local communities, exemplified by Work in Progress (2016–2020), a mural created with her daughter, Liberty Blake. The project celebrated the achievements of 360 women in history, reflecting her belief in art’s power to foster inclusivity, dialogue, and collective memory. Today, Haworth’s practice continues to explore themes of identity, gender, and the interplay between high and low art. In the UK public domain, Haworth’s works are held in prominent collections, including the National Galleries of Scotland, Arts Council Collection, and Pallant House Gallery.

Related books

Louis Jebb, ‘Jann Haworth, Pop Art Pioneer, Discovers a 'Soft and Warm' Sensibility in Response to Changes Brought by the Global Pandemic’, The Art Newspaper, 31 March 2023
Hélène Guenin, Géraldine Gourbe and Mathilde de Croix, Les Amazones du Pop: She-bam Pow Pop Wizz! (Paris: Editions Flammarion, 2020)
Angela Stief, Martin Walkner and Christoph Steinegger, Power up Female Pop Art (Köln: DuMont Buchverlag, 2010)
Jann Haworth Pop, exhibition catalogue (Wolverhampton: Wolverhampton Art Gallery, 2009)
Jann Haworth: Artist's Cut, exhibition catalogue (Londo: Mayor Gallery, 2006)
Art and the 60s: This Was Tomorrow, Tate Britain, London (2004)
Worlds in a Box: Cornell, Fluxus, Herms, LeWitt, Samara, Whitechapel Gallery, London (1994)
Nicholas Usherwood, The Brotherhood of Ruralists (London: Lund Humphries in association with the London Borough of Camden, 1981)
Peter Blake: a Group of Souvenirs; Jann Haworth: a Group of Sculptures (Bath: Festival Gallery, 1974)
Jann Haworth. Michael Oelman: Recent Prints/Arctic Series, exhibition catalogue (Bristol: Arnolfini Gallery, 1972)
Roland Penrose, 4 Young Artists, exhibition catalogue (London: Institute of Contemporary Arts: 1963)

Related organisations

The Brotherhood of Ruralists (founder)
Slade School of Fine Art (student)
Courtauld Institute of Art, London (student)

Selected exhibitions

Out of the Rectangle, Gazelli Art House, London (2023)
Oh, Marilyn!, Gazelli Art House, London (2022)
Jann Haworth: Mannequin Defector, Gazelli Art House, London (2021)
Jann Haworth: Close Up, Pallant House Gallery, Chichester (2019–2020)
Summer Group Show, Gazelli Art House, London (2020)
POP Jann Haworth, Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Wolverhampton (2009)
Marco Livingstone, Jann Haworth: Artist's Cut, Mayor Gallery, London (2006)
Solo exhibition, Gimpel Fils, London (1993, 1995)
Solo exhibition, Waddington Galleries, London (1974)
Jann Haworth. Michael Oelman: Recent Prints/Arctic Series, Arnolfini Gallery, Bristol (1972)
Solo exhibition, Robert Fraser Gallery, London (1969)
Pop Art, group exhibition, Hayward Gallery, London (1968)
Solo exhibition, Robert Fraser Gallery, London (1966)
4 Young Artists, Institute of Contemporary Arts, London (1963)
Young Contemporaries, RBA Galleries, London (1963)

Ben Uri archive

Consult items in the Ben Uri archive related to [Jann Haworth]

Ben Uri Research Unit

for the study and digital recording of the Jewish, Refugee and wide Immigrant contribution to British visual culture since 1900.

Jann Haworth artist