Portrait of Winston Churchill
Portrait of Winston Churchill is the title of a portrait created in 1954 by the British painter Graham Sutherland .
background
At the time of its creation, Churchill, himself a passionate painter, was about to turn 80. After holding the post from 1940 to 1945, he had been in his second term as Prime Minister since 1951 and was struggling with health problems. Only a year later, in 1955, he gave up the office prematurely.
Sutherland already had the reputation of a modern painter, who was best known for his expressionist paintings and for his abstract- surrealist elements as well as in a later creative phase for his portraits made from the 1950s.
Development process
The painting was commissioned by members of the House of Commons and the House of Lords to mark Churchill's upcoming 80th birthday. Work began in August 1954 and was completed in the same year. Initial preparatory work in the form of sketches and studies was carried out in the prime minister's private residence. The larger-than-life portrait was then created over several months. On November 30, 1954, the portrait was unveiled as planned in Westminster Hall in the presence of Churchill.
According to contemporary witness reports, the model and the painter got along very well during the creation process. This is how Clementine Churchill , the prime minister's long-time wife, wrote to her daughter:
"Papa has given him 3 sittings and no one has seen the beginnings of the portrait except Papa and he is much struck by the power of his drawing."
"Papa [meaning Churchill, editor's note. Ed.] Granted him 3 sessions and nobody, with the exception of Papa, saw the beginnings of the portrait and he is very impressed by the expressiveness of his drawings. "
Apart from glimpsing the drawings, neither Winston nor Clementine Churchill saw the unfinished portrait. When Sutherland left Checkers , the painting was covered. After completion, it was transported away, still unseen by the Churchills. It only became No. Downing Street a week before the public unveiling . 10 brought. Clementine had seen the portrait shortly before.
reception
The reception of the painting was very different. At the public presentation, Churchill - to the laughter of the audience - commented on the picture as follows:
"The portrait is a remarkable example of modern art."
"The portrait is a remarkable example of modern art"
In another context, Churchill said the painting made him look moronic. Clementine Churchill initially took a liking to the picture, but later changed her mind.
Whereabouts
The portrait no longer exists. For a long time it was believed that it was destroyed by Clementine Churchill. However, as part of research into a biography of Churchill, sound recordings were seen that attribute the destruction to Grace Hamblin , Churchill's private secretary. Accordingly, the painting was brought by her and her brother to a remote house and burned there. Clementine Churchill found out about the crime the next morning and approved it. Sutherland described the destruction of the painting as an "act of vandalism". However, preparatory work on the painting still exists; there is also a copy of the painting in the Carlton Club .
Trivia
The - partially exaggerated - genesis of the portrait and its presentation are the subject of the ninth episode of the first season of the series The Crown .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e Furness, Hannah: Secret of Winston Churchill's unpopular Sutherland portrait revealed . The Telegraph online v. July 10, 2015. Available at [1] .
- ^ A b Doran, Sarah: The Crown: What really happened to Graham Sutherland's controversial portrait of Winston Churchill? . radiotimes v. December 16, 2016. Available at [2] (English).
- ↑ a b c d e o.A .: The 1954 Sutherland Portrait . The International Churchill Society. Available at [3] (English).
- ↑ McNearney, Allison: Winston Churchill and His Wife Hated His portrait So Much She Destroyed It . thedailybeast.com v. August 21, 2016. Available at [4] .
- ^ Jury, Louise: Sutherland portrait of Churchill displayed for first time in 20 years . independent.com v. February 6, 2003. Available at [5] .
- ↑ oA: Sutherland portrait of Churchill . alistairlexden.org.uk v. May 13, 2017. Available at [6] (English).