'On the Beach' - A limited edition silkscreen print by Sir Peter Blake, part of the The Classroom Suite, signed and numbered by the artist. Printed at Coriander Studios, published by CCA Galleries.

The Classroom Suite (2009) depicts different popular leisure activities: the circus, the seaside, an aquarium and a parade. 'On The Beach' seeks to capture all the activities that we associate with a visit to the seaside: swimming, messing around in boats, fishing, paddling, sunbathing, donkey rides and so on. However, Blake contrasts these familiar ideas with unexpected images of African and Australian tribal life, and an erotic glimpse of the naked female form.


To create the composition, Blake uses one of his favourite techniques: gathering visual materials from a variety of sources such as Victorian postcards, old photographs, zoological illustrations, images from artworks or magazines, and arranges these over a simple background. This collage technique is one he also used to great effect in his recent Venice Suite, it gives the works a surreal twist and provides the viewer with a feast of detail for the eye. The use of these collaged elements also lends the work a witty and humorous twist.