With this self portrait I realised my ambition of winning the school painting prize against fierce competition; it demonstrates how seriously painting and drawing were taught at Eton.
The senior drawing master Wilfred Blunt (1901 - 1987) encouraged me particularly. There were visits from his brother, Anthony, who was simultaneously engaged as a spy for Russia.
Various ageing members of the Bloomsbury group lectured; it was the First World War poet and writer Sacheverell Sitwell (1897 - 1988) who awarded me the art prize.
Elitism was part and parcel of the school ' s ethos and taken for granted. This was to be abruptly and fundamentally contradicted by the radical attitudes of art school when I left.
| Next > |
|---|
