Wakefield Museums and Castles

Albert Wainwright (1898-1943) was an artist, illustrator and theatre designer from Castleford. In 1927, he became a temporary art teacher at Castleford Grammar School for two years.  

Wainwright was a gay man at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in Britain.

Much of Wainwright’s work, particularly in his private sketchbooks, focuses on the male form, including young men and school students. His drawings include nude male figures with some examples of frontal nudity.

Wakefield Museums and Castles are aware that questions have been raised about Wainwright’s possible conduct. These include the apparent young age of some of his models, whether he abused his position as a teacher, and relationships he is believed to have had with younger, probably adolescent men.

We have conducted research into Wainwright’s life, work and reputation.

Wainwright is understood to have referred to his homosexuality in his public artwork through symbolism and hidden references. This reflects the often necessarily covert nature of gay culture during the period.

Wainwright never achieved the fame and commercial success of his contemporary Henry Moore. Some speculate that his homosexuality may have prevented him from seeking a greater recognition in his lifetime.

It is understood that Wainwright’s sisters posthumously destroyed many of his private sketchbooks. This is sometimes said to have been intended to protect his reputation. The surviving sketchbooks are understood to have been sold to an art dealer by Wainwright.

Much of the commentary around Wainwright acknowledges his interest in the male form and particularly adolescents. The drawings in his private sketchbooks are generally interpreted as a tender, intimate depiction of gay love. Depictions of male intimacy were rare at the time.

There is a consensus that Wainwright had relationships in the 1920s and 1930s with Otto Jubermann and George Collins.

Otto’s age is unknown but he was the son of Wainwright’s host family when he was visiting Germany. Wainwright’s sketchbooks documenting their relationship include naked portraits of Otto, including frontal nudity. The age of consent in Germany at the time was 14.

George Collins was born in 1910 and was therefore 12 years younger than Wainwright. He was also drawn nude by Wainwright.

Wainwright’s relationships with younger men are generally depicted as consensual love affairs. These relationships would have been illegal at the time. Homosexuality was not decriminalised in England until 1967. It wasn’t until 2001 that an equal age of consent for gay men was secured.