Insulin 8.27 diagram
Dorothy Hodgkin, late 1930s
This delicate multicoloured drawing dates from the late 1930s
when chemist Dorothy Hodgkin (1910-1994), who later won a Nobel
Prize, first began to publish her research on insulin. It was
selected by Dr Helen Megaw, (1907-2002) who led the Festival
Pattern Group at the 1951 Festival of Britain. Diagrams of atomic
structure were used as inspiration for wallpaper, curtains,
laminates, carpets, dress fabrics, ties and crockery. Hodgkin's
drawing inspired a wallpaper design used in the Festival's Regatta
Restaurant.