Page 15 - cn-The Art of Style Status STUDIO pres April 2024

The composition captures the juxtaposition of the studio interior and the window view to the grounds beyond, which rises to the
upper terraces and house. This “Sir Winston Churchill’s Studio” painting can be realised as an allegorical portrayal of Churchill’s
life, through the collective curated aspects of his studio. The layout and studio furniture inclusive of hung paintings are as in
Churchill’s own time. Each element of the composition is a significant representation of Churchill’s pathway; his influences, pas-
sions and achievements.
What is most powerful are the paintings hung around the studio that Churchill painted through his life at times of differing circum-
stances and historical importance. As with all paintings or art forms, in this case the physicality of his paintings present the mani-
festation of his thoughts and actions within, and immersed by moments, in Churchill’s life, and thereby bridge time for us to relate
to.
The outer view to the gardens and house beyond reminds us of his passion for gardening and his love of Chartwell as a home and
its location in the Kentish countryside. The sketching box of oil paints and brushes symbolically alludes to painting travels and
engagement in the ‘en plein air’ mode of painting; which was a great passion and a subject he wrote about as in his book ‘Painting
as a Pastime’. The collection of books and accompanying writing paper with pens placed forming a ‘V’ in a victory sign, signify
his passion for history and his power of usage with the English language and symbolism which led him to victory.
In fact, Churchill lived through his pen. The pedestal bust of Lady Randolph Churchill – Jennie Jerome, {daughter of the New
York Stockbroker, Leonard Jerome}, and Churchill’s mother, is attributed to the American sculptor, Thomas Waldo Story, who
also created the Naiad Fountain at Blenheim Palace. Churchill’s mother being a powerful woman, was a great influence in his
early life and the beginnings of his military career. His relationship went beyond mother and son as Churchill treated his mother
more as a sister. The paintings hung on the wall are, from the top; “Lake Carezza with the Dolomites in the Distance” - painted in
the 1949 – oil on canvas, “Red Rocks in the South of France “– painted in 1950 – oil on canvas. “The Grotto of Ropemakers”,
Syracuse in Sicily– painted in 1955 – oil on canvas, “Scene on the River Loup”, Alps Maritimes – painted in 1936 - oil on canvas.

Chartwell, Kent.NT