Dobson, Frank

Frank Dobson, (born November 18, 1886, London, England—died July 22, 1963, London), English sculptor who was influential in the promotion and development of modern sculpture in England.

The son of a commercial artist, Dobson studied art in Arbroath, Scotland, from 1906 to 1910 and then at the City and Guilds of London Art School until 1912. In his early paintings he was influenced by Post-Impressionism. Around 1914 he began to sculpt, inspired by Paul Gauguin’s wood carvings and “primitive” sculpture. Dobson’s first carvings showed the influence of Cubism, but he gradually turned to simplified figurative sculpture in the tradition of Aristide Maillol. Dobson’s subject matter was chiefly allegorical and symbolic, often interpreted through the nude female figure. The English art critic Roger Fry was a leading proponent of his work, which was highly regarded during the 1920s and ’30s.