Edward Pond

Eddie, who died in London last week, was a really important influence on my life. Look on line and you will get the standard biog.

Eddie Pond went to art school at Dagenham, Essex, followed by three years at the Royal College of Art, in the textile department. At graduation he received a silver medal for a dissertation on the life of Mackmurdo, the architect, designer and pseudo economist. He went to work for Bernard Wardle Everflex, manufacturers of coated fabrics, and in his first year won a Council of Industrial Design, Design of the Year Award. He played rugby and was chosen to represent North Wales Clubs and asked if he would like to have a trial for Wales. He transferred to the parent company Bernard Wardle Fabrics, where he was appointed a director.

Head hunted by the Wallpaper Manufacturers he set up the Central Studio but was more involved with promotional aspects of the company and the training of designers. Made a director of Polycell, for whom he set up Polypops Products and Paperchase, the latter company resulting in a management buy out. He set up Edward Pond Associates as design consultants, resulting in visits to USA, South Africa, Zimbabwe, South Korea and most European countries. For two years from 1981he was President of the Chartered Society of Designers and later Chairman of the Design and Industries Association.

Eddie was much more than that.

I met him through his daughter, Hannah - who was at Camberwell with me. We quickly became friends and I regularly worked for him at his office in Alfred Place - just behind Tottenham Court Road. Without the practical experience ( and income ) life would have been much harder. I spent one whole summer tracing out his large scale artworks for Network Rail and creating the separations for silkscreens - anyone who has travelled by train in the South of England between '88 and '05 will have seen them ( there are still a few hanging about ). Eventually - he trusted me enough to create my own - there are about 30 of mine in the set ( his are signed 'Eddie Pond' - mine 'Edward Pond Associates ) - I still have all the original artworks. If I hadn't worked for Eddie - I would not have been able to afford to go to Royal College. ( some here ) ( More here )

For years Eddie supported and encouraged me - he was a kind, warm and funny man - a great designer with a quick with and eye for pattern and colour. He underwrote the lease on my first flat in London ( it was technically a company let, and I didn't ask him - he found out I needed the references and just did it ) and sent regular postcards with his wonderful giant hadwriting. I know I wasn't the only person he helped through college - there are quite a few of us out there. He encouraged and believed in me in the way my parents didn't.

I also thought that Eddie ( and his lovely wife, Jane ) were impossibly glamorous. They had lived next door to Jeff Banks and Sandy Shaw in the late 60s - and later bought a stunning house in blackheath from one of Dire Straights - and then a castle in Cornwall - and finally a wonderful modernist house in Greenwich - right on the park. Hannah once told me that when she was a child - Christine Keeler came to her tea party. Jane was also fascinating - in later life she did a degree and appeared on Women's hour talking about her research into the influence and history of women in the Gas industry. Between them they had also traced their entire family tree back as far as possible.

I've seen through his archive and he created wonderful 2 and 3D works - his textile and wallpapers were stunning. Later - I helped a little on a project to create a giant ceramic mural in Plymouth.

A couple of years ago - I loaned him some software and gave him some help over the phone with a piece of artwork - he sent me a crate of wine from Fortnums as a thank you. That's the kind of man he was.

Very lovely man, and I was lucky to have known him.