1956-07-21 — Page 7

THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, JULY 21, 1956.

ANNIGONI-PAINTER

OF THE

F

Unknown for 20 years he suddenly catapults to fame.... a story that

glitters.......... beginning today

QUEEN...

the outskirts of Florenco visit to the exhibition at such heaven abovo, or that la in the earth beneath, or that is in the to his studio in the Borgo a tense and dramatic' time,"

water under the earth

was J'Albizi.

On the day of the opening, he circled in pencil and senyly tried hard

the 10 pretend he underlined Scrawled at

He bottom were the words: "Craven had almost forgotten it.

to

When

returned he Florence I drove him to the station in a 28-year-old nine horse-power Riley that

& saloon. crank

Was Onco had to start.

muges. If you do not stop now, prepare to meet your end."

did not mention it to his wife he mounted his bicycles and pedalled to the studio. He said nothing to his three excited 10 Florenos, Annigon had He students Luciano Guarnieri, and Suzle to Duggie Anderson, it

Robosz. But he was obviously on edge.

fince back in h native Italy he decided not to return for the opening of the Royal Academy 1 tot 36". "1 was so over- whelmed by the reception the

By David Wynne-Morgan portrait had

OR 20 years Pietro had held successful exhibi-

Annigoni wis

unknown

201

tions in artist portraits

Bond Street, his irt the Royal

WAK

Now he is the most Academy exhibitions had portrait heen praised by the critics, sought-after

this

something with but painter in London, commissions worth £600,000 completely different, waiting to be done. portrait lifted him to fame his remarkable portrait of the Queen.

ste

He had brought art to the

table. breakfast

Por ORG morning politics, the world situation, the crime wave, Intest film romance This was success s no the other artist has known 1:1 were forgotten. Instead his the front this

Overnight painting was on century Annigoni became a world. page of almost every news

paper in Britain. famous celebrity.

In less than 24 hours be had completely captured the public imagination.

For more than five years

No

man

*

He did not relax until, late in was the afternoon, a telegram delivered from ane of his closcat friends. "Pietro," read, this wre your day. 1 already reveived was so proud for you."

The Man At Work

Annigoni, a great lover of the open air, is at his happiest hiking with his sketch book. An audience of ragamuffin children watches him as he draws cul- side the walls of Toledo in Spain. He went there for

month last year

it

of most always

his spent life among a tight circle of his intimate friends, and the most disturbing price of fame the intrusion on his privacy.

WAH

His studio became one of the attractions of the city tourist

ho hud and Blocks of people never seen before began to walk

in us if it was their right.

In the end

ho compro-

mised.

Ho

نله

locked the out- vido door Gay and would admit no onu under any cir- cumstances EX- cept between noon and 1 p.m. hen ho kept upen house.

1x

action wag proci jatuni- ed by a bionde American, one of the richest women it the United States, who walked in one afternoon and said: "Mr Anuigoni?" He nodded. have decided "

she went o,

"that you are

going to paint

story in the Italian papers that worth thousands of pounds were

it was Gina Lollobrigida.

When, at last, he did return.

turned down.

A

to England he was inundated It is typical of him, and an my portrait,"

from

of famous example with requests

his Innaifcal A Title people to paint their portrails. loyalty to his friends, that he shaken. Among those he refused were insisted on doing a portrait of Annigoni re Sir William Haley, the

me us former me and giving it to plied: "1 am director of the BBC, and Lady mark of his friendship.

wife be impossible Derby, the beautiful

Was nearly Lord Derby, who killed

by one of her footmen two years ngʊ. He just did not want to paint any more society portraits.

afraid that will ul the maneni busy on other work."

29 1 ain

very

She would not take no for

ill. maswer. “You had belter do it now because I do not intend staying in Florenco very long." she

of

RS

Instead he held a cocktail for all those who had asked him. As tactfully possible they were told he was

Loo just

Commissions busy.

said, brushing his opposi- party tion aside with the charm of a bulldozer.

do "K you

not 1

with photographer Alex Sterling who all go to Salvador Dalk” took the

the photograph. On detail of his drawing of the

left: boy.

The taunt Was 100 much. Annigoni leaped up, threw open

said: the door, and

"Madam, *** you can go to the devil as fur

as I am concerned."

This was the beginning of an avalanche.

Telegrams,

inte

I was this complete freedom the now had to paint. any- casured thing he wanted he most of all, in the end he re- fused even to talk to people on studio. telephone tho

RL his One morning he told a woman

to usk him who telephoned to paint her that he was too busy to accept any commissions. He

without asking

her rang of

It was only several days that he realised fram

*p the penreal publie that I dia bol want to be in the centre of things when the critics had

letters, postcards for The er

I

tive turn

have always loodea

studio weeks. to please myself and

Not all of them were has remained painted

Complimentary. love, for the most part, ignored

Stakea unmoved by success,

the crities,

One from the United

The contained a pamphlet with He eats in the same restau-

no fault of nine

Ten Commandments printed on had been bull! with rants, he mixes

the exhibition

Inlo the 'Battle of the The sond commandment, same people,

he still up

Thou shalt not make unto thee Queens with the portrait by Simon Elwes as the opposition. ony graven linage, or any like name.

that ness of any thing

is ja arter

and

he had been well known in bicycles the three miles from art circles in London, he his semi-detached villa

E

on

I did not want to pay my first

William Hickey

GAD SIR! I'm cock-n-

-reports the New Social

Register in which

is as good as a

hoop this morning! WHO TO TIP YOUR HAT TO

Socially, I'm right in

the top drawer-with the highest in the land.

It cost me just £1 10s. to find my snob value-1 108. to H.M. Stationery Office for the General Register Office's new book listing thousands of occupations and places in society.

their

men." she explained, "because all the women over there make themselves so attractive."

in

London

I'm

on

a Tramp

Baronet

to

Д

"They are their own worst enemies due to an inbred 17- Ieriority complex. That is why their manner is so often bully- ing. They are on the defensive *But

all the time. Last comes a special section.

that "IL

attitude which X category--"other

vacation seeing new shows and persons-

old friends. I also want to see puls of English people And no gainful occupation stated."

Virginia McKenna, Jacqueline when they have had a drop too They include baronets, busi-

Ellis, and Mary Ure about much they put off a lot more,

!n speculators, equerries,

new play I am putting on

Their great hearts beat in such gipsies,

New York."

a bearish exterior-rather Uke gentlemen-in-waiting. ladies-in-waiting, paupers, peers, sherlífs, tramps and vagrants,

Billy, now 50, and wearing its Russions, usta) swollen nightclub-green "I can never understand why One of the principals of the "I'm interested in fe," she complexion, put his arm gently the Scots ond English have Census Office, Mr W. J. V. said brightly. "and I'm always around his 36-year-old wife's never got down to finding out Littlewood ("Don't use my busy have flown more than shoulders, Christion mes, please")

ness

Madam Laird demonstrated I meant about precisely what American youthfulness.

What was her secret?

miles inside

America

a

more about each other. I Bus- "We are also going to buy pect that's the Scotsman's fault." Remember, Scotsmen, that was a Scot talking-not William Hickey.

our town furniture is an

told 250,000 me: "The social classification is since the war"

for some furniture the work of various depart-

Her advice

Good elderly house. to the and down ments here sitting

don't go to English invention." thinking hard. It is cold-blood- "When you shop,

old ladies' department-go ed-without any bias whatever." the

to the section for teenagers."

And there 1 am in Class 1. the Arst of live main social classes: authors, journalists, and editors.

From now on people such as Sir Albert Richardson, President of the Royal Academy, Mr Robert Birley. head master of Eton, impresario Jack Hylton, III knights think? the chief constables and super- intendents of police, and all the station

masters can tip their with hata to me

They are my social inferiors. Painters, sculptors, head masters, impresarios, the police chiefs, etc.,

come into Class 11 with stovedores, moneylenders, pawn- brokersal M.P.s.

Alan for the actors, mysi- cians, ballet dancers, cricketers, photographers, and Jockeys

And what do the social class

Sir Ralph Richardson hooted · SO SECRET

laughter: **The Census

people might be right; because DILLY Rose, America's master there are an awful lot of wait- B

showman, is about to start resses in our profession."

Sir Gordon Richards let out a yelp of glee: "I don't mind being stuck among the wait resses and stable lads-red at the bottom of the

Len Hutton wanted to know whether gardeners дуего In cluded in his own class III: "Batsmen sometimes do a bit

of gardening on the pitch."-

For the record, gardeners are Len's inferiors-Class IV.

a secret mission behind the Iron Curtain.

He added: "You know, I'm not working as hard as i used to. I found myself taking short cut to an ulcer and slowed down,"

I wonder what Mr Rose was like before he slowed down

"The molives behind my visit SCOTSMEN-BY A SCOT cannot be discussed" said the

ve-foot three-inch Rose, oozing AUTHOR with mystery. "Let's say want to see what showbiz like out there,"

is

ho

see***** FAUX PAS

STORY about two duchessca

Amusing London society.

It happened at an exhibition by the National Jewellery Associa tion in the Cafe Royal

The Duchess of Marlborough went down to the front door of the Duchess James Kennaway's to receive first novel about life with a Gloucester, who was to inspect Highland regiment in

peace the Jewels. time. "Tunes of Glory," is not

They returned upstairs. Along being dramatised for radio in Scent Alled the room.

a korridor, they were deep in "It's Scotland.

conversation. At the end they. nome cheap stuff I buy " said. "I like it too," said blonde Offcial reason: it might not turned loft, instead of right. Mra Rowe, formerly Joyce kelp the recruiting - campaign

Cries of "Your grace, your Mattheway ex-wife of comedian over the border.

came from the official Milton Bérle

I could understand why after following behind. The duchesses Yeahid Rose,

Surned who has talking to 27-your-old Kenna- all engrossed-had- pulled himself up from the way," born in Auchterarder, near into the gentlemen's cloakroom- TOLD Madam Roso Laled, aluma of New York, where he

Sald one of the official ! Evans, Malcolm Sargent, 70- year-old American was bein, into the millionaire

took Wit ke Awfully Dame Margot Fonteyn, Sir Lon beautician, that I had never category we'll be ⠀ vining He lestved

food round Moscow Leningrad, Warworu, SAW Cameron H Hutton Court photographer seen old women in America!"

pted, with lau at 90 C Boron, and ales di don Richards, "Arneson yoming Haywa

Prague," Zagreb,

I'm not sure I ought to know them at all. They are fright- fully infra, dip-Closs 11 with the waiters, stable lads, kennel malda chimneysweeps, crane.!!! drivers, oilers, and gressers.

And I aball have to get my STAYING YOUTHFUL Bocrblary to speak Laurence Olivier, Dame Edith

to

Sir

('6"pubalterni.with

strace

It was during one of the three two-hour sittings for this that he told me: "I do not want to cio another

the portrali at moment. I want to try some- thing much more ambitious,"

It Ipak Margot Fonteyn, Britain's

ballerina, prima change his mind.

(COPYRIGHT)

to

ANNIGONI'S PORTRAIT

OF THE

QUEEN

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