Ed Hall (1944 – )

Ed Hall was born in Norwich and studied at Norwich School and then BA Architecture at Sheffield University. His first job in an Architect's office was in Liverpool, but by 1974 he was working for Lambeth Council building council houses.  In the early 1980's, major political changes were taking place and Ed became active in his trade union. He became the UNISON Branch Secretary at Lambeth Council representing 16,000 staff and, because he had drawing skills, began to make banners for the campaigns which flourished at the time.

In 1999, while putting up a UNISON stall at the Lambeth Country Show, Ed met the artist Jeremy Deller. Ed recalls the half hour conversation but at that time did know of the significance of Jeremy's work. Part of the stall was a banner protesting the Brixton Bomb and Jeremy included this in his exhibition "Intelligence" at the Tate in 2000. Deller won the Turner Prize in 2004, and in a set of memorials for his entry, Hall made a banner celebrating the arrival of the Empire Windrush in 1948.

In 2005 Hall created banners for "Folk Archive" a project curated by Deller with Alan Kane. The entire 'archive' is now a part of the British Council Collection and has since toured to Milan, Paris and Shanghai.

Hall's collaboration with Jeremy Deller has continued with banners created for the exhibitions "From One Revolution to Another" (Palais de Tokyo, 2008); "Procession" for the Manchester International Festival; and "Joy in People" (Hayward Galley, 2012) for which Hall created a title banner and external banners which stretched over two facades.

In 2011 Ed was asked by the Peoples History Museum to hold an exhibition "On the March" in its new Manchester gallery; he has also created banners for Michael Wood's BBC2 series "The Great British Story", (2012) and for the stage show "Penny Arcade." 

In 2013, the British Council Visual Arts Department commissioned Hall to create two banners celebrating the collection, past and present. 

Despite his crossover success in the field of contemporary art, the making trade union and campaign banners remain central to Hall's work. They are best seen in anti-cuts marches along the Embankment, and at the summer trade union festivals at Tolpuddle, the Chainmakers Festival and at Burston in Norfolk.