Painting

Maurice de Sausmarez and Leeds

An exploration of the artist, writer and art educator Maurice de Sausmarez's time in Leeds, including his tenure as Lecturer and Head of the Department of Fine Art at the University of Leeds.

The Birth of the University's Department of Fine Art

Maurice de Sausmarez's relationship with the city of Leeds.

Gregory Fellowships

The Gregory Fellowships in the Creative Arts were established in 1949 and ran until 1980.

The University Art Collection

Maurice de Sausmarez's support for the Gregory Fellows continued in his involvement with and recommendations to the University's Art Collection.

Alongside his contributions to the development of the University’s Fine Art Department and the work of the Gregory Fellows, Maurice de Sausmarez was also heavily involved in cultural activities on campus.

Makerere College School of Art

In July 1952, while working as Lecturer and Head of Fine Art, de Sausmarez visited the Makerere College School of Art in Uganda. He visited the college, at the request of the Inter-University Council for Higher Education in the Colonies, to advise on the development of the school and a new Diploma course.

Lectures and Extramural Teaching

Alongside of his work at the University, de Sausmarez also lectured and taught extensively throughout the region. He organised and chaired several lecture series both for students and the public, giving many of the lectures himself and helping to broaden interest in the study of art.

Broadcasting

Throughout his career, Maurice de Sausmarez gave talks and lectures on art history and the discussion around art education reform through various radio and TV broadcasts.

Basic Design

'Basic Design', inspired by Bauhaus education principles, played a vital role in revolutionising art school teaching in Britain in the 1950s and 1960s. The two main principles of the movement were a reasoned and objective approach to teaching and the importance of embracing science, technology and the modern world.

Painting

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Maurice de Sausmarez completed many paintings and artworks while living and working in Leeds. He was commissioned to paint several portraits including that of Professor of English Literature and co-founder of the University’s Fine Art Department, Bonamy Dobrée, and of Gregory Fellow in Poetry, James Kirkup.

In 1954 de Sausmarez produced a series of illustrations depicting the university campus for A.N. Shimmin’s book The University of Leeds: The First Half-Century. They depict various locations on campus including Clothworkers Court, the interior of the Brotherton Library and the University Union.

De Sausmarez also painted some local scenes. In 1952 he painted the North Yorkshire coastal village of Staithes. The painting shows a bleak and fragile landscape of battered old houses, demonstrating the bruised vulnerability of post-war Britain. The Maurice de Sausmarez Archive includes a postcard sent to de Sausmarez by Harry Thubron who was staying in Staithes in August 1952. Thubron writes to tell de Sausmarez how well he is set up there and inviting him to hurry over. It could be assumed that it was on this visit that de Sausmarez painted his landscape of the village.

A few years later, in around 1952, de Sausmarez painted one of his most famous works. Whitelocks Bar depicts staff at work behind the bar of one of Leeds’ most popular public houses, and is a much warmer and friendlier scene than the bleak landscape of Staithes. It is likely the painting that de Sausmarez exhibited at the 1955 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition under the title Bar-tenders however, photographs held within the Archive show that two versions of the subject were created. Along with preparatory reference photographs for the two versions there is also a photograph of bar staff at Whitelocks holding the second painting. This second version shows the bar and its staff from a different, wider angle and includes more of the pub’s interior. The location and ownership of this second painting is not known.