Churchill: The Statesman as Artist

Description

Across almost 50 years, Winston Churchill produced more than 500 paintings. His subjects included his family homes at Blenheim and Chartwell, evocative coastal scenes on the French Riviera, and many sun-drenched depictions of Marrakesh in Morocco, as well as still life pictures and an extraordinarily revealing self-portrait, painted during a particularly troubled time in his life. In war and peace, Churchill came to enjoy painting as his primary means of relaxation from the strain of public affairs. In his introduction to Churchill: The Statesman as Artist, David Cannadine provides the most important account yet of Churchill's life in art, which was not just a private hobby, but also, from 1945 onwards, an essential element of his public fame. The first part of this book brings together for the first time all of Churchill's writings and speeches on art, not only 'Painting as a Pastime', but his addresses to the Royal Academy, his reviews of two of the Academy's summer exhibitions, and an important speech he delivered about art and freedom in 1937. The second part of the book provides previously uncollected critical accounts of his work by some of Churchill's contemporaries: Augustus John's hitherto unpublished introduction to the Royal Academy exhibition of Churchill's paintings in 1959, and essays and reviews by Churchill's acquaintances Sir John Rothenstein, Professor Thomas Bodkin and the art critic Eric Newton. The book is lavishly illustrated with reproductions of many of Churchill's paintings, some of them appearing for the first time. Here is Churchill the artist more fully revealed than ever before.

Professor Sir David Cannadine is Dodge Professor of History at Princeton University, Editor of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography and President of the British Academy. His numerous publications include The Undivided Past, In Churchill's Shadow, Class in Britain and The Decline and Fall of the British Aristocracy. He appears regularly on television and radio, and lectures widely in the UK and America.

Masterly and comprehensive ... Professor Cannadine establishes the links between the guiding intelligence of the statesman and that of the painter so convincingly that it leaves me wondering whether any other aspirant for high public office who doesn't have either a love, knowledge or deep respect for art, should seriously consider limiting the extent of their ambition. * Christopher Le Brun, Artist and President of the Royal Academy * Winston Churchill saw the world with an artist's eyes. David Cannadine's eloquent introduction, and the sources he has chosen to cite, illuminate the interplay between art, words and politics that shaped this most fascinating individual. * Allen Packwood, Director, Churchill Archives Centre, Cambridge * This immensely uplifting and beautifully produced book covers every aspect of Churchill as an artist, and what painting meant to him. What started as therapy soon turned into a lifelong pleasure for Churchill, and David Cannadine brilliantly shows how one can't really understand Churchill without appreciating this vital part of his life. * Professor Andrew Roberts * David Cannadine brings wit, verve and insight into this fascinating theme of the brushwork, wordpower and artistry of a man who lived on the very widest canvas. * Lord Peter Hennessy, Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History, Queen Mary University London * Deeply insightful and always lively, Churchill historian David Cannadine now turns his beady eye to Churchill as painter. The great politician emerges both further enhanced, and more human, as we understand how painting helped banish his black dog and gave his life outside politics meaning and value. * Dame Fiona Reynolds, Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, former Director-General of the National Trust * Elegant and erudite * Literary Review *