Display News Menu

Steven Hubbard Retires

July 2, 2025

2025 will see the retirement of a member of staff who has given an amazing 44 years of his life to the teaching of art to a great many Wycliffe College pupils. Steven Hubbard (Staff Member 1981-2025 & Hon. OW) will be leaving Wycliffe this month after more than four decades, seven Head teachers and a great deal of change across Wycliffe College.

Below, you can read a brief account of Steven’s time at Wycliffe, as well as his life as a successful artist.

We’d love to post the memories you have of Steven, while at Wycliffe. His teaching and influence, art trips, in the studio etc. Please email them to tws@wycliffe.co.uk. We’ll post a selection on this page.

On behalf of all OWs, Hon. OWs and former Wycliffe parents/guardians we thank you Steven for your many, many(!) years of dedication, hard work and the positive impact you’ve had on pupils and wish you a happy retirement from teaching at Wycliffe.

I was appointed as a part-time artist in residence by Richard Poulton (Head of Wycliffe College 1980-85), the first of seven Wycliffe Heads I have worked under since I arrived in the Spring term in 1981. His wife ran an art gallery, and he was keen to encourage the arts.

Early on it was an old-fashioned school, with some masters wearing gowns and Morter boards. Staff smoked whilst teaching, (a maths teacher famously had an ash tray in all four corners of his classroom with a cigarette in each), there was sherry in the staff room, and cakes were provided for staff at break time!

My first Head of Dept was Peter Beynon, who was a motorcycling legend in the school, (he owned a Moto Guzzi), and had been here for an extraordinary 20 years! He was a very practical man, and a stonemason. He, among others (including some of the boys), helped rebuild the chapel. He was the only art teacher until I arrived. On my first day here he just gave me his Year 9s and instead of artist in residence I became his assistant. I have had six HODs since, culminating in the best, Nikki Green.

Having never taught before, my old tutor from art school gave me a few pointers before I arrived, as he had taught in a boy’s school early in his career. His most salient tip was ‘never enter the store cupboard when the key is in the door’, as he had languished there for a whole afternoon when his class locked him in!

My Mother and uncle were both artists. Initially I taught part-time to survive as an artist, later I realised I enjoyed it! When I first worked here, I was starting out and was selling watercolours in smaller galleries in the area. In the Mid 80s I entered the National Portrait Gallery Young Portrait Artist of the Year competition with my first oil painting and the first portrait I had ever done. Much to my surprise I was shortlisted and won a prize. Even more extraordinarily, I was approached in a rather cloak and dagger fashion by the director of the NPG to ask if I would sell my prize-winning portrait to a client and also, perhaps, do some commissions. I agreed, and the client turned out to be the Chair of Governors at the NPG, Master of Christ’s College Cambridge and historian Sir John Plumb. He commissioned me to paint a group of his close friends, and I worked regularly for him for about six years, enjoying good meals, wine and conversation with him every time I delivered a portrait!

During this period, I also painted two portraits for Wycliffe College, one of Tony Millard Head of Wycliffe College (1985-94), now hanging in the dining hall, and T Lloyd Robinson (OW H 1925-30, Chair of Governors 1970-83 & President of Wycliffe 1988-96) which is in the Council Chamber.

In the 90s, I was taken on by an important commercial gallery in Mayfair, The Francis Kyle Gallery, and I showed there until Francis retired in 2014. By this time, I had turned my back on portraiture and developed my own idiosyncratic work that combined painting, gilding, marquetry and wood carving. These works are now in collections all over Europe and America. There are examples in public collections at the Royal Holloway and Stroud’s Museum in the Park.

By the time Francis Kyle retired I had begun to make multiblock Lino prints, and after the gallery closed these became my focus of creativity. With them I have been accepted at the Royal Academy of Arts Summer exhibition on 12 occasions, including this years’ exhibition which runs from June 17th to August 17th 2025. I also show them in several galleries throughout the UK, and they are represented in the permanent print collection of San Diego University, USA.

Wycliffe has changed very much since I first walked through the gates. However, it has for the most part been a friendly and interesting environment in which to teach, and I have made many connections over the years with both students and staff. I have taught sons and daughters, and even perhaps grandsons and daughters of former students. On occasion I am accosted by a 45-year-old and told I taught them, and I apologise for the fact that, at this distance in time, I am not always able to recall exactly who they are. Many students, however, are memorable, and there are some former students, who I have retained contact with, and seen regularly, for decades, (you know who you are!). Some of those students have become much more successful artists than I, and I’m proud to have had some small part in their journey.

When people have asked me why, until now, I have always remained teaching, I have a flippant answer, although there is a grain of truth within it. I say, “I still enjoy being called an idiot by a teenager”, and the true part is I really like the youth, vigour, enthusiasm, curiosity, forthrightness and sometimes surprising depth of thought and unknown skills that one comes across in the art room when working alongside young people. An added bonus has been that for the past 15 years I have also worked with a wonderful group of adults in art that made the job a joy. We have achieved amazing things with often initially un-promising material, and that is down to the extraordinary creativity and dedication of Nikki Green, Rose Wordsworth and Alex Norman-Walker. A better art team has not worked at this school in the last 44 years.

– Steven Hubbard (Staff Member 1981-2025 & Hon. OW)

Memories and Comments from the Wycliffe Community:

I would like to pass on a thank you to Mr Hubbard. Not only did he secure my art scholarships when I was a pupil, but mentored me to achieve standard that was accepted into central St Martins, and later Falmouth. I have to date, had a successful career as a painter in the film industry and as an artist in residence at a gallery. Mr Hubbard taught me the foundations that I still use today in my practice. Thank you for the guidance and continuing to inspire students up until now

– Hazel Spencer-Chapman (P HE 1997-2006)

 

A wonderfully committed and kind colleague. Congratulations Steve. Enjoy your retirement- you have certainly earned it! With my thanks for all you did for Wycliffe during my time.

– Margaret Burnet Ward (Head of Wycliffe College 2005-2015 & Hon. OW)

 

Happy retirement Sir. Thank you for your top tips on painting and drawing, they stood me in good stead over the years.

– Claire Shearman-Brettle (HE 1990-1994)

 

A true legend

– Andrew Golightly (Staff Member 2009-2019 & Hon. OW)

 

Some great memories being taught by Mr Hubbard! I learnt a lot and he had a great sense of humour. Happy Retirement Sir!

– Paul Carter (J W 1990-1998)

 

Mr Hubbard was the best art teacher. Always so encouraging and positive, so much so that part of my degree was in fine art. Happy retirement Mr Hubbard and thankyou for being so passionate and encouraging about the subject.

– Elizabeth Lewis (HE 1991-1993)

 

To me Steve represents a breed of Artists/Teachers who are increasingly rare in today’s fast paced world. His skills in so many areas are diverse and numerous and bear testament to the deep commitment to his practise as an artist. What he didn’t know, he decided to teach himself – in earlier years locking himself away for days and weeks at a time in order to improve his skills.

From Watercolour still-lives to oil portraiture, Ceramics & Printmaking to Marquetry & gilded Constructions; he has managed to combine his artistic career with teaching part time at Wycliffe over the past 44 years (through seven changes of both Head and HoD!) Many of his works are held in collections across the world and for the last 12 years he has had work hung in the Royal Academy Summer show – no mean feat.

Steve is honourable, kind, sensitive, and thoughtful with a generosity of spirit happy to share his skills and knowledge and forming great relations with both students and staff alike. Generations of students have benefitted, loved (well, most of them!) and been privileged to be taught by him.

Some words from an ex-student:

“ …. Your sense of humour, firm but fair attitude, inspirational art skills, positive outlook shrouded in faux gloom(!), our favourite teacher ever”

Steve has been the mainstay of Art at Wycliffe. His skills and knowledge underpinning everything that we do. The ‘Daddy’ of the department he has supported and been there for all of us giving a gentle ‘steer’ when things have been tough and always ready with a cheeky quip. As a team we have had such fun together; fights over the best office chair, eternal bickering, hilarious stories from the past, discussions about Art and the world and the ever-present breath of a dog from beneath the office desk.

From his early beginnings after college selling watches from the back of a Honda in Soho and supporting Nuns in a local convent, he’s not half done bad. As my colleague and friend over the last 25 years I wish him all the very best and believe that the Wycliffe College Art Dept will be a poorer place for his absence.

– Rose Wordsworth (Staff Member 2002-present & Hon. OW)