Denys Irving
Denys Irving | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Denys George Irving |
| Also known as | Lucifer |
| Born | 4 January 1944 Colwyn Bay, North Wales |
| Died | 5 August 1976 (aged 32) |
| Genres | Garage rock, psychedelic rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, filmmaker |
| Instrument(s) | electric guitar, bass, percussion, vocals, electronics |
| Labels | private press |
Denys George Irving (4 January 1944–5 August 1976), was a Welsh filmmaker and musician from Colwyn Bay, North Wales.
Early life and education
Irving grew up in South London and was educated at Dulwich College (1954–1961), where he was awarded the Fawkes Memorial Scholarship to Balliol College, Oxford (1962), where he read Philosophy, Politics and Economics. He was a friend of Howard Marks at Oxford.[1][2] After graduating in 1966, Irving went on to study at the London School of Economics, and was a graduate student in the Philosophy Ph.D. program at Columbia University, New York.
Early audio-visual work
At Columbia Irving became interested in artificial intelligence and started working with computers. Using Columbia University's mainframe computer he developed programs to produce short computer-generated silent films.[3]
He pioneered projection systems for 'psychedelic' effects, initially using liquid inks on glass slides, and later combining these with photographic images. He mounted a powerful projector in his apartment in the East Village and projected images onto the building opposite, often attracting substantial crowds.
During his stay in New York Denys recorded (as Dennis Irving) an interview with the American Jazz/Experimental composer Sun Ra for Pacifica Radio.[4]
Films and music
On his return to London in 1969, Irving continued to be interested in making films and in record production. He set up a company called Lucifer films Ltd. with Naomi Zack whom he had met at Columbia. Lucifer films developed into Lucifer recordings, and produced various records that Howard Marks described as "proto punk". Lucifer released several singles, including "Fuck You" and two LPs, "Big Gun" and "Exit" in which Irving played all the instruments and also provided the vocals.
The "Exit" LP was the soundtrack to the recently-rediscovered "motor-cycle shock film" Exit which Irving co-wrote and co-directed with Zack, and which he starred in. The film has been digitised by Barney Platts-Mills and received a belated premiere at the Portobello Pop Up Cinema on 30 September 2012. It was screened at the British Film Institute on 17 April 2015 as part of "Cinema Born Again: Radical Film from the 70s", and the original 16mm print is held in the BFI archive.[5][6]
Around 1975, Irving became interested in synthesizers and, working with his friend Mike Ratledge of Soft Machine, constructed a prototype synthesizer that Ratledge used on the soundtrack to the 1977 film 'Riddles of the Sphinx' (directed by Laura Mulvey & Peter Wollen).[7][8]
Two of his computer-generated films, 69 and Now, are held in the LUX collection.[9]
Personal life and death
Irving married Merdelle Jordine, an actress who was one of the first Black women to appear in a British soap opera, Crossroads, in 1975, and they had a son.
In America, Irving had taken up hang gliding and he continued to pursue this interest in England. In August 1976 his hang glider crash-landed at Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex, and he was fatally injured.[10]
References
- ^ Marks, Howard (2010). Mr Nice. Vintage. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-09-954215-5. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
- ^ Patten, Chris (22 June 2017). First Confession: A Sort of Memoir. Penguin UK. p. 77. ISBN 978-0-241-27560-3. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
- ^ Curtis, David (25 July 2019). A History of Artists' Film and Video in Britain. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 142. ISBN 978-1-83871-417-8. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
- ^ "Sun Ra interviewed by Dennis Irving". Internet Archive. Pacifica Radio. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
- ^ https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/154057717
- ^ "Exit (1971)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
- ^ Lamm, Kimberly (12 June 2025). Riddles of the Sphinx. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 38. ISBN 978-1-83902-687-4. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
- ^ "Riddles of the Sphinx". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 13 October 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
The film's ground-breaking electronic score, by The Soft Machine's Mike Ratledge, was composed on synthesisers which were developed in collaboration with Denys Irving (the man behind the mysterious and controversial 1970s band Lucifer).
- ^ "Collection / Denys Irving". LUX. Archived from the original on 1 January 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
- ^ Hunter, John. "Accident Reports". British Hang Gliding History. Retrieved 12 August 2025.