Augustus John (1878 – 1961)
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BOY IN A LARGE HAT Augustus John (1878 – 1961) P2592 © The Artist's Estate
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PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST: TETE FAROUCHE C1902 Augustus John (1878 – 1961) P2446 © The Artist's Estate
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CANADIAN TROOPER C 1918 Augustus John (1878 – 1961) P2593 © The Artist's Estate
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THE PHEASANT 1902 Augustus John (1878 – 1961) P2633 © The Artist's Estate
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HEAD OF A CHILD Augustus John (1878 – 1961) P2591 © The Artist's Estate
Augustus John is probably best known as a painter of exuberant portraits. Born in Tenby, Pembrokeshire, the younger brother of the artist Gwen John, he studied at the Slade School of Art. Despite being described as a quiet, methodical student, he was hailed as the most brilliant draughtsman of his generation. He developed a lifelong interest in the Romany way of life, taking to living in a caravan with his wife, mistress and several children for many years. He married his first wife, Ida Nettleship in 1900, and met his mistress Dorelia McNeill in 1902 (she became his second wife in 1907, after Ida’s death). The etching The Pheasant in the British Council Collection is an intimate work made shortly after he first met Dorelia, who was then working as a legal secretary. They launched into a passionate affair (‘The smell of you is in my nostrils and it will never go and I am sick of love for you...’ letter from AJ to Dorelia), and Ida agreed to a menage-a-trois,, with Ida bearing him five children, Dorelia two. The Romany way of life suited his desire to break free from the constraints of late Victorian mores; but also places him within an imaginative trajectory in English arts and letters – from George Borrow to Eric Gill to the Ruralists – of individuals attracted to alternative ways of living, removed from the social structures of the predominantly urban classes. A larger painting of Dorelia in a Feathered Hat (1903–4) is in the collection of Amgueddfa Cymru / National Museum Wales
Further reading:
Augustus John, Chiaroscuro Fragments of Autobiography, Jonathan Cape, London 1952
Etchings by Augustus John RA : Catalogue of a Special Exhibition, National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, 1954
Michael Holroyd, Augustus John, William Heinemann, London 1974
Glossary
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Etching
An intaglio process whereby a metal plate (normally copper, zinc or steel) is covered with an acid-resistant layer of rosin mixed with wax. With a sharp point, the artist draws through this ground to reveal the plate beneath. The plate is then placed in an acid bath (a water and acid solution) and the acid bites into the metal plate where the drawn lines have exposed it. The waxy ground is cleaned off and the plate is covered in ink and then wiped clean, so that ink is retained only in the etched lines. The plate can then be printed through an etching press. The strength of the etched lines depends on the length of time the plate is left in the acid bath.
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Painting
Work of art made with paint on a surface. Often the surface, also called a support, is a tightly stretched piece of canvas, paper or a wooden panel. Painting involves a wide range of techniques and materials, along with the artist's intellectual concerns effecting the content of a work.
See in
- Macedonia, Skopje, Museum Of Contemporary Art
- Malta, Valletta, St James Cavalier Centre For Creativity
- UK, London, Whitechapel Art Gallery
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/drawing-distinctions-1997">DRAWING DISTINCTIONS- Poland, Lodz, Museum Sztuki
- UK, Nottingham, Castle Museum And Art Gallery
- UK, Milton Keynes, Milton Keynes Gallery
- Russia, Nizhny Novgorod, Museum Of Fine Arts
- Russia, Moscow, Pushkin Museum Of Fine Arts
- Russia, St Petersburg, The Hermitage
- Canada, Whitehorse, Yukon, Yukon Arts Centre
- Canada, Grande Prairie, Alberta, Prairie Art Gallery
- Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Winnipeg Art Gallery
- Canada, Timmins, Timmins Museum And N E C
- Canada, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Acadia University Art Gallery
- Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, National Art Gallery
- Malaysia, Penang, Penang State Museum And Art Gallery
- USA, Tempe, Arizona, Arizona State University Art Museum
- USA, Berkeley, University Art Museum
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/pastel-society-centenary-exhibition-2000">PASTEL SOCIETY CENTENARY EXHIBITION- UK, London, Mall Galleries
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/drawn-from-life-1995">DRAWN FROM LIFE- Belgium, Brussels, Western European Union
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/beauty-and-the-beast-1987">BEAUTY AND THE BEAST- Wales, Aberystwyth, Aberystwyth Arts Centre
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/british-drawings-and-watercolours-of-the-20th-century-from-the-collection-of-the-british-council-1951">BRITISH DRAWINGS AND WATERCOLOURS OF THE 20TH CENTURY FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE BRITISH COUNCIL- Germany, Karl-Marx-Stadt, Stadtische Kunstammlungen
- Germany, Weimar, Kunstammlungen
- Germany, Leipzig, Altes Rathaus
- Germany, Cologne, Wallraf-Richartz-Museum
- Czechoslovakia, Prague, Kinsky Palace
- Czechoslovakia, Ceske Budejovice, Ceske Budejovice
- Czechoslovakia, Bratislava, Slovak National Gallery
- Slovakia, Bratislava, Slovak National Gallery
- Romania, Bucharest, National Gallery
- Germany, Berlin, Neue Berliner Galerie
- Hungary, Budapest, National Gallery
- Bulgaria, Sofia, National Gallery
- Korea, Seoul, National Museum Of Contemporary Art
- Japan, Tokyo, Tokyo
- Japan, Sendai, Sendai
- Japan, Yokohama, Yokohama
- Japan, Nagano, Nagano
- Chile, Chile
- Argentina, Buenos Aires, British Council Office - Buenos Aires
- Algeria, Algiers, British Council Office - Algiers
- Tunisia, Tunis, Municipal Gallery
- Hong Kong, Hong Kong City Hall Art Gallery
- Lebanon, Sursock Museum
- Lebanon, Beirut, The Sursock Museum
- Gibraltar, Calpe Institute
- Malta, Valletta, Society of the Arts
- Malta, Valletta, Malta Society Of Arts
- Greece, Athens, Centre of Letters and Fine Arts, Ministry of Education
- Greece, Athens, Centre Of Letters And Fine Arts Of The Ministry Of Education
- Finland, Finland
- Austria, Vienna, British Council Office - Vienna
- Belgium, Belgium
- Canada, Canada
- Portugal, Coimbra, Museu Da Nacional Machado De Castro
- Portugal, Porto, Museu Nacional Soares Dos Reis
- Portugal, Lisbon, Lisbon
- France, Bourges, Maison De La Culture
- Israel, Haifa, Museum Of Modern Art
- Israel, Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv Museum
- New Zealand, Palmerston, The Science Centre And Manawatu Museum
- New Zealand, Wanganni
- New Zealand, Nelson, Suter Art Gallery
- New Zealand, Auckland, Aukland City Art Gallery
- New Zealand, Wellington, Wellington City Art Gallery
- New Zealand, Napier, Napier
- New Zealand, Christchurch, Robert Mcdougall Art Gallery
- New Zealand, Dunedin, Dunedin Public Art Gallery
- Spain, Madrid, British Institute
- Spain, Barcelona, British Institute
- Germany, Konstanz, Europahaus
- Germany, Mannheim, Kunsthalle
- Germany, Dortmund, Museum Am Ostwall
- Germany, Mönchengladbach, Kunstverein
- Germany, Karlsruhe, Staatliche Kunsthalle
- Germany, Munich, Amerika Haus
- Germany, Wiesbaden, Landesmuseum
- Germany, Stuttgart, Staatsgalerie
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/meisterwerke-der-graphik-und-zeichnung-1954">Meisterwerke der Graphik und Zeichnung- Switzerland, Arbon, Landenberg-Gesellschaft
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/contemporary-british-prints-and-drawings-from-the-wakefield-collection-1947">CONTEMPORARY BRITISH PRINTS AND DRAWINGS FROM THE WAKEFIELD COLLECTION- Fiji, Suva, Fiji Arts Club
- New Zealand, Rotorua, Rotorua Museum Of Art And History
- New Zealand, Hamilton, Waikato Museum Of Art & History
- New Zealand, Rotorua, Society Of Arts
- New Zealand, Auckland, Aukland City Art Gallery
- New Zealand, Wellington, Wellington City Art Gallery
- New Zealand, Waipukurau, Not recorded
- New Zealand, Takapuna, Not recorded
- New Zealand, Dannevirke, Not recorded
- New Zealand, Napier, Napier
- New Zealand, Wanganni
- Australia, Brisbane, Queensland Art Gallery
- Australia, Sydney, Art Gallery Of New South Wales
- Australia, Hobart, Tasmanian Museum And Art Gallery
- Australia, Melbourne, Melbourne Royal Exhibition Building
- Australia, Adelaide, Art Gallery Of South Australia
- Australia, Perth, Art Gallery Of Western Australia
- UK, London, Victoria And Albert Museum
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/british-graphic-art-1945">British Graphic Art- Finland, Helsinki, Konsthall
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/modern-paintings-and-drawings-by-british-artists-1943">MODERN PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS BY BRITISH ARTISTS- UK, London, Ognisko Polskie (Polish Hearth) Belgrave Square
- UK, London, Belgian Institute, Belgrave Square
- UK, London, Czechoslovak Institute, Grosvenor Place
- UK, London, Greek House, Grovesnor Square
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http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/exhibition/new-york-worlds-fair-1939">NEW YORK WORLD'S FAIR- USA, Chicago, Arts Club Of Chicago
- USA, Boston, Museum Of Fine Arts
- USA, Toledo, Toledo Museum Of Art
- Canada, Québec, Art Association Of Montreal
- Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, National Gallery Of Canada
- Canada, Art Gallery of Toronto
- USA, New York, British Pavilion World's Fair