Night Letters, Roger Hilton

Roger Hilton (1911–1975) produced the works now known as the ‘Late Gouaches’ and ‘Night Letters’ during the final two years of his life at his cottage in Cornwall’s West Penwith. Confined to bed and sustained mainly by the whisky and cigarettes (that were at least in part the cause of his sickness), the insomniac created upwards of a thousand colourful gouaches and illustrated messages to his long-suffering wife Rose. Sometimes bitter, occasionally insulting, but always poignant and amusing, the letters record Hilton’s thoughts on art, his imminent death, the irritations and pleasures of everyday life, and his often controversial assessments of colleagues and contemporaries. This full-colour book reproduces nearly 300 of the artist’s ‘Night Letters’ and ‘Late Gouaches’, and includes many drawings and gouaches not previously seen in public.

Edited by Timothy Bond

The Archive of Modern Conflict is an organisation dedicated to the collection and preservation of vernacular photographs, objects, artefacts, curiosities, and ephemera. Founded in 1991, the archive began as a collection of photographs relating to war and conflict but has since expanded its remit to become the vast and thematically diverse repository it is today.