Original sketch by British artist David Heathcote (1931–2025)

On the inside cover of the Royal Academy's The Sacred Art of Tibet

Author

Publisher

Printing Details

First edition. Paperback booklet, stapled binding. 29.5 × 21cm, 30pp.

This copy belonged to British artist David Heathcote, and on the inside rear cover he has drawn a portrait of a child, signed and dated 6.11.92. David Heathcote (1931–2025) was a distinguished British artist, educator, and internationally recognized scholar of African art history. Trained at the Canterbury College of Art and later in the United States, Heathcote spent several formative decades in Nigeria as Head of Art History at Ahmadu Bello University, where he became a preeminent authority on Hausa embroidery and West African textiles. Upon returning to his roots in Kent, he became a pillar of the Canterbury Society of Art, celebrated for his disciplined "structuralist" approach to the English landscape. His work, characterized by a sophisticated interplay of geometric abstraction and rhythmic light, remains held in numerous private and public collections. These volumes from his personal library reflect the intellectual breadth of a man who bridged the gap between mid-century Modernism and the rich heritage of African craftsmanship.

An outline of Tibetan art intended as a resource for teachers. Illustrated in colour and black & white, it gives details on the scared role of Tibetan art, its development, and introduction to Buddhism etc.

Condition

There is surface wear to the cover but the contents in very good condition. Heathcote's sketch in very good order.