Sir kenneth clark biography books

British art historian, museum bumptious, and documentary TV presenter (1903–1983)

This article is about the counter historian. For the politician, examine Kenneth Clarke. For other citizens, see Kenneth Clark (disambiguation).

The Right Honourable The Lord Clark OM CH KCB FBA
Clark photographed in 1934 by Histrion Coster
Born	Kenneth Mackenzie Clark (1903-07-13)13 July 1903 Mayfair, London, England
Died	21 May 1983(1983-05-21) (aged 79) Hythe, Kent, England
Alma mater	Trinity College, Oxford
Occupations	art historian museum director broadcaster author
Spouses	Elizabeth Winifred "Jane" Martin ​ ​ (m. 1927; died 1976)​ Nolwen bring down Janzé-Rice ​ ​ (m. 1977⁠–⁠1983)​
Children	3, including Alan and Colin

Kenneth Mackenzie Clark, Baron Clark (13 July 1903 – 21 Could 1983) was a British guarantee historian, museum director and hack.

His expertise covered a ample range of artists and periods, but he is particularly corresponding with Italian Renaissance art, pinnacle of all that of Carver da Vinci. After running pair art galleries in the Thirties and 1940s, he came greet wider public notice on the fourth estate, presenting a succession of programmes on the arts from blue blood the gentry 1950s to the 1970s, greatness largest and best known procedure the Civilisation series in 1969.

The son of rich parents, Clark was introduced to rectitude arts at an early esteem. Among his early influences were the writings of John Ruskin, which instilled in him greatness belief that everyone should own access to great art. Tail coming under the influence announcement the art experts Bernard Berenson and Roger Fry, Clark was appointed director of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford aged xxvii, and three years later no problem was put in charge summarize Britain's National Gallery.

His 12 years there saw the room transformed to make it independent and inviting to a thicken public. During the Second Artificial War, when the collection was moved from London for protected keeping, Clark made the erection available for a series worry about daily concerts which proved wonderful celebrated morale booster during loftiness Blitz.

After the war, instruction three years as Slade Senior lecturer of Fine Art at Metropolis, Clark surprised many by securing the chairmanship of the UK's first commercial television network.

On a former occasion the service had been victoriously launched he agreed to dash off and present programmes about rendering arts. These established him orangutan a household name in Kingdom, and he was asked force to create the first colour collection about the arts, Civilisation, be in first place broadcast in 1969 in Kingdom and in many other countries soon afterwards.

Among many titles, Clark was knighted at magnanimity unusually young age of xxxv, and three decades later was made a life peer in a moment before the first transmission ensnare Civilisation. Three decades after queen death, Clark was celebrated barge in an exhibition at Tate Kingdom in London, prompting a assessment of his career by fine new generation of critics person in charge historians.

Opinions varied about government aesthetic judgment, particularly in attributing paintings to old masters, on the contrary his skill as a scribbler and his enthusiasm for popularising the arts were widely established. Both the BBC and description Tate described him in review as one of the cap influential figures in British skill of the twentieth century.

Life and career

Early years

Clark was born at 32 Grosvenor Square, London,^{[n 1]} the matchless child of Kenneth Mackenzie Politico and his wife, (Margaret) Grudge, daughter of James McArthur domination Manchester.^[2] The Clarks were skilful Scottish family who had adult rich in the textile production.

Clark's great-great-grandfather invented the material spool, and the Clark Cord Company of Paisley had grown-up into a substantial business.^[1] Kenneth Clark senior worked briefly kind a director of the resolution and retired in his twenties as a member of picture "idle rich", as Clark immature later put it: although "many people were richer, there package have been few who were idler".^[1][3] The Clarks maintained territory homes at Sudbourne Hall, Suffolk, and at Ardnamurchan, Argyll, queue wintered on the French Riviera.^[2][4] Kenneth senior was a player, a gambler,^{[n 2]} an whimsical and a heavy drinker.^[2][6] Adventurer had little in common twig his father, though he again remained fond of him.

Spite Clark was shy and long-way-off, but her son received liking from a devoted nanny.^[7]

As barney only child not especially shut to his parents, the countrified Clark had a boyhood delay was often solitary, but agreed was generally happy. He succeeding recalled that he used differentiate take long walks, talking register himself, a habit he putative stood him in good function as a broadcaster: "Television obey a form of soliloquy".^[8] Cap a modest scale Clark chief collected pictures, and the ant Kenneth was allowed to exchange the collection.

He developed pure competent talent for drawing, bring forward which he later won a number of prizes as a schoolboy.^[9] Conj at the time that he was seven he was taken to an exhibition forfeiture Japanese art in London, which was a formative influence gain his artistic tastes; he rot, "dumb with delight, I matte that I had entered capital new world".^[10][11]

Clark was educated milk Wixenford School and, from 1917 to 1922, Winchester College.

Class latter was known for cast down intellectual rigour and – achieve Clark's dismay – enthusiasm verify sports, but it also pleased its pupils to develop interests in the arts.^[12] The talent, Montague Rendall, was a stalwart of Italian painting and sculpture; he inspired Clark, among various others, to appreciate the workshop canon of Giotto, Botticelli, Bellini distinguished their compatriots.^[13] The school contemplate contained the collected writings fair-haired John Ruskin, which Clark develop avidly, and which influenced him for the rest of government life, not only in their artistic judgments but in their progressive political and social beliefs.^{[14][n 3]}

From Winchester, Clark won trig scholarship to Trinity College, Town, where he studied modern story.

He graduated in 1925 come to get a second-class honours degree. Slip in the Oxford Dictionary of Staterun Biography, Sir David Piper comments that Clark had been expectable to gain a first-class scale, but had not applied being single-mindedly to his historical studies: "his interests had already stinking conclusively to the study nigh on art".^[2]

While at Oxford, Clark was greatly impressed by the lectures of Roger Fry, the valuable art critic who staged birth first Post-Impressionism exhibitions in Kingdom.

Under Fry's influence he ahead an understanding of modern Nation painting, particularly the work medium Paul Cézanne.^[16] Clark attracted picture attention of Charles F. Buzzer, Keeper of the Fine Divide into four parts Department of the Ashmolean Museum. Bell became a mentor down him and suggested that put his B Litt thesis Pol should write about the Idyll revival in architecture.

At go wool-gathering time it was a deep down unfashionable subject; no serious learn about had been published since nobleness nineteenth century.^[17] Although Clark's continue area of study was nobleness Renaissance, his admiration for Ruskin, the most prominent defender nominate the neo-Gothic style, drew him to the topic.

He exact not complete the thesis, on the other hand later turned his researches impact his first full-length book, The Gothic Revival (1928).^[2] In 1925, Bell introduced Clark to Physiologist Berenson, an influential scholar clone the Italian Renaissance and buff to major museums and collectors.

Berenson was working on great revision of his book Drawings of the Florentine Painters, most important invited Clark to help. Justness project took two years, partly cover with Clark's studies at Oxford.^[18]

Early career

In 1929, as a be in of his work with Berenson, Clark was asked to class the extensive collection of Sculptor da Vinci drawings at City Castle.

That year he was the joint organiser of scheme exhibition of Italian painting which opened at the Royal Institute on 1 January 1930. Sand and his co-organiser Lord Balniel secured masterpieces never seen already outside Italy, many of them from private collections.^[19] The event covered Italian art "from Cimabue to Segantini" – from decency mid-thirteenth to the late-nineteenth century.^[20] It was greeted with general and critical acclaim, and semicircular Clark's profile, but he came to regret the propaganda regulate derived from the exhibition by virtue of the Italian dictator Benito Potentate who had been instrumental satisfaction making so many sought-after paintings available.^[21] Several senior figures plug the British art world censured of the exhibition; Bell was among them, but nevertheless oversight continued to regard Clark by the same token his favoured successor at greatness Ashmolean.^[22]

Clark was not convinced desert his future lay in administration; he enjoyed writing, and would have preferred to be unornamented scholar rather than a museum director.^[23] Nonetheless, when Bell stop working in 1931 Clark agreed become succeed him as Keeper give an account of the Fine Art Department go bad the Ashmolean.

Over the adjacent two years Clark oversaw high-mindedness building of an extension resolve the museum to provide pure better space for his department.^[24] The development was made doable by an anonymous benefactor, later revealed as Clark himself.^[25] Culminate acquisitions while at the Ashmolean included a large piece human mid-19th-century furniture known as influence Great Bookcase.

Victorian art elitist architecture were out of method in the 1930s, "generally scorned and derided", according to picture art historian Matthew Winterbottom,^{[26][n 4]} but Clark believed that they should be represented in righteousness collection, although the bookcase was not put on display \'til 2016.^[26] A later curator find time for the museum wrote that Pol would be remembered for her majesty time there, "when, with culminate characteristic mixture of arrogance instruction energy, he transformed both magnanimity collections and their display."^[28]

National Gallery

In 1933 the director remind you of the National Gallery in Author, Sir Augustus Daniel, was getting on sixty-seven, and due to leave at the end of depiction year.

His assistant director, Unshielded. G. Constable, who had antediluvian in line to succeed him, had moved to the different Courtauld Institute of Art significance its director in 1932.^[29] Magnanimity historian Peter Stansky writes ditch behind the scenes the Formal Gallery "was in considerable turmoil; the staff and the room were in a state contribution continual warfare with each other."^[30] The chairman of the committee, Lord Lee, convinced the cook minister, Ramsay MacDonald, that Explorer would be the best measure, acceptable to the professional baton and the trustees, and due to restore harmony.^[31] When prohibited received MacDonald's offer of significance post, Clark was not ardent.

He thought himself too leafy, aged 30, and once send back felt torn between a profound and an administrative career. Dirt accepted the directorship in Jan 1934, although, as he wrote to Berenson, "in between mind the manager of a cavernous department store I shall take to be a professional trouper to the landed and ex officio classes".^[32]

At about the same over and over again as accepting MacDonald's offer enterprise the directorship, Clark had declined one from King George V's officials to succeed C.

Revolve. Collins Baker as Surveyor entity the King's Pictures. He matte that he could not uproar justice to the post family unit tandem with his new duties at the gallery.^{[n 5]} Goodness king, determined to succeed wheel his staff had failed, went with Queen Mary to honourableness National Gallery and persuaded Pol to change his mind.^[34] Honourableness appointment was announced in The London Gazette in July 1934;^[35] Clark held the post on the next ten years.^[36]

Clark deemed in making fine art open to attack to everyone, and while excel the National Gallery he devised many initiatives with this suspend in mind.

In an position statement, The Burlington Magazine said, "Clark put all his insight other imagination into making the Not public Gallery a more sympathetic site in which the visitor could enjoy a great collection slant European paintings".^[37] He had escort re-hung and frames improved; mass 1935 he had achieved character installation of a laboratory stake introduced electric lighting, which unchanging evening opening possible for rank first time.

A programme make famous cleaning was begun, despite scarce sniping from those opposed dash principle to cleaning old pictures;^[37][38] experimentally, the glass was aloof from some pictures.^{[37][n 6]} Purchase several years he had birth gallery opened two hours under than usual on the passable of the FA Cup Valedictory, for the benefit of family unit coming to London for honourableness match.^[40]

Clark wrote and lectured fabric the decade.

The annotated classify of the royal collection take away Leonardo da Vinci's drawings, burden which he had begun thought in 1929, was published get through to 1935, to highly favourable reviews; eighty years later Oxford Dissolution Online called it "a profession of firm scholarship, the outlook of which have stood decency test of time".^[41] Another 1935 publication by Clark offended severe in the avant-garde: an design, published in The Listener, "The Future of Painting", in which he rebuked surrealists on honourableness one hand and abstract artists on the other for claiming to represent the future swallow art.

He judged both by the same token too elitist and too specialized – "the end of nifty period of self-consciousness, inbreeding significant exhaustion". He maintained that worthy art must be accessible cut short everyone and must be settled in the observable world.^[42] At hand the 1930s Clark was hassle demand as a lecturer, advocate he frequently used his trial for his talks as nobility basis of his books.

Put back 1936 he gave the Ryerson Lectures at Yale University. Evade these came his study attention Leonardo, published three years later; it too, attracted much flatter, at the time and subsequently.^[41]

The Burlington Magazine, looking back at the same height Clark's time at the crowd, singled out among the scrunch up acquired under his leadership justness seven panels forming Sassetta's San Sepolcro Altarpiece from the 15th century, four works by Giovanni di Paolo from the equivalent period, Niccolò dell'Abate's The Stain of Eurydice from the onesixteenth century and Ingres' Madame Moitessier from the nineteenth.^[43] Other mo acquisitions, listed by Piper, were Rubens's Watering Place, Constable's Hadleigh Castle, Rembrandt's Saskia as Flora, and Poussin's The Adoration warning sign the Golden Calf.^[2]

One of Clark's least successful acts as vicepresident was buying four early-sixteenth c paintings now known as Scenes from Tebaldeo's Eclogues.^[44] He dictum them in 1937 in representation possession of a dealer stress Vienna,^[44] and against the allied advice of his professional pikestaff he persuaded the trustees strip buy them.^[2] He believed them to be by Giorgione, whose work he considered inadequately delineated in the gallery at righteousness time.^{[n 7]} The trustees authorized the expenditure of £14,000 show signs public funds and the paintings went on display in representation gallery with considerable fanfare.^[44] Cap staff did not accept dignity attribution to Giorgione, and reversed a year scholarly research personal the paintings as the preventable of Andrea Previtali, one oust Giorgione's minor contemporaries.^[44] The Country press protested at the misuse of taxpayers' money, Clark's name suffered a considerable blow, illustrious his relations with his trained team, already uneasy, were new-found strained.^{[2][n 8]}

Wartime

The approach of contest with Germany in 1939 appreciative Clark and his colleagues stay at consider how to protect depiction National Gallery's collection from carpet bombing raids.

It was agreed mosey all the works of correct must be moved out be more or less central London, where they were acutely vulnerable. One suggestion was to send them to Canada for safekeeping, but by that time the war had under way and Clark was worried end in the possibility of submarine attacks on the ships taking magnanimity collection across the Atlantic; operate was not displeased when loftiness prime minister, Winston Churchill, vetoed the idea: "Hide them direction caves and cellars, but sob one picture shall leave that island."^[49] A disused slate excavations near Blaenau Ffestiniog in northward Wales was chosen as rectitude store.

To protect the paintings special storage compartments were constructed, and from careful monitoring outline the collection discoveries were indebted about control of temperature jaunt humidity that benefited its control and display when back obligate London after the war.^[49]

With be over empty gallery to preside make ineffective, Clark contemplated volunteering for primacy Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, however was recruited, at Lord Lee's instigation, into the newly biform Ministry of Information, where flair was put in charge loosen the film division, and was later promoted to be somebody of home publicity.^[50] He backdrop up the War Artists' Counselling Committee, and persuaded the regulation to employ official war artists in considerable numbers.

There were up to two hundred retained under Clark's initiative. Those contained "official war artists" included Prince Ardizzone, Paul and John Writer, Mervyn Peake, John Piper increase in intensity Graham Sutherland.^[51] Artists employed lane short-term contracts included Jacob Carver, Laura Knight, L. S. Painter, Henry Moore and Stanley Spencer.^[52]

Although the pictures were in store, Clark kept the National Room open to the public close the war, hosting a well-known series of lunchtime and perfectly evening concerts.

They were say publicly inspiration of the pianist Myra Hess, whose idea Clark greeted with delight, as a acceptable way for the building attain be "used again for wellfitting true purposes, the enjoyment souk beauty."^[53] There was no further booking, and audience members were free to eat their sandwiches and walk in or wrecked during breaks in the performance.^[54] The concerts were an instant and enormous success.

The Tuneful Times commented, "Countless Londoners champion visitors to London, civilian skull service alike, came to appeal on the concerts as topping haven of sanity in far-out distraught world."^[55] 1,698 concerts were given to an aggregate meeting of more than 750,000 people.^[56] Clark instituted an additional defeat attraction of a monthly featured picture brought from storage dominant exhibited along with explanatory fabric.

The institution of a "picture of the month" was engaged after the war, and, be redolent of 2025, has continued to leadership present day.^[57]

In 1945, after supervisory the return of the collections to the National Gallery, Explorer resigned as director, intending end up devote himself to writing.

By the war years he difficult to understand published little. For the assembly he wrote a slim manual about Constable's The Hay Wain (1944); from a lecture crystal-clear gave in 1944 he obtainable a short treatise on Metropolis Battista Alberti's On Painting (1944). The following year he volitional an introduction and notes fulfil a volume on Florentine paintings in a series of view books published by Faber become calm Faber.

The three publications totalled fewer than eighty pages halfway them.^[58]

Postwar

In July 1946 Clark was appointed Slade Professor of Tapered Art at Oxford for elegant three-year term.^[59] The post necessary him to give eight the populace lectures each year on honesty "History, Theory, and Practice abide by the Fine Arts".^[60] The regulate holder of the professorship difficult to understand been Ruskin; Clark took introduce his first subject Ruskin's period of office of the post.^[61]James Stourton, Clark's authorised biographer, judges the go out with to be the most enriched his subject ever held, squeeze notes how, during this duration, Clark established himself as Britain's most sought-after lecturer, and wrote two of his finest books, Landscape into Art (1947) shaft Piero della Francesca (1951).^{[61][n 9]} By this time Clark negation longer hankered after a employment in pure scholarship, but aphorism his role as sharing potentate knowledge and experience with prestige wide public.^[62]

Clark served on abundant official committees during this period,^{[n 10]} and helped to sensationalize a ground-breaking exhibition in Town of works by his companion and protégé Henry Moore.

Why not? was more in sympathy be on a par with modern painting and sculpture stun with much of modern framework. He admired Giles Gilbert Histrion, Maxwell Fry, Frank Lloyd Feminist, Alvar Aalto and others, however found many contemporary buildings mediocre.^[64] Clark had been among birth first to conclude that confidential patronage could no longer aid the arts; during the hostilities he had been a arresting member of the state-funded Consistory for the Encouragement of Song and the Arts.

When gush was reconstituted as the Terrace Council of Great Britain focal 1945 he was invited preserve serve as a member prescription its executive committee, and brand chairman of the council's music school panel.^[65]

In 1953 Clark became primacy Arts Council's chairman. He kept the post until 1960, nevertheless it was a frustrating fashion for him; he found yourself chiefly a figurehead.

Moreover, fiasco was concerned that the method the council went about relieve the arts was in liable to be of damaging the individualism have fun the artists whom it supported.^[2]

Broadcasting: administrator, 1954–1957

The year after appropriate chairman of the Arts Consistory, Clark surprised many and surprise some by accepting the tiller of the new Independent Iron Authority (ITA).

It had bent set up by the Wildly government to introduce ITV, fruitful television, funded by advertising, introduction a rival to the Brits Broadcasting Corporation. Many of those opposed to the new commentator feared vulgarisation on the hold your fire of American television,^[66] and allowing Clark's appointment reassured some, bareness thought his acceptance of grandeur post a betrayal of beautiful and intellectual standards.^{[67][n 11]}

Clark was no stranger to broadcasting.

Noteworthy had appeared on air regularly from 1936, when he gave a radio talk on air exhibition of Chinese Art rot Burlington House; the following origin he made his television premiere, presenting Florentine paintings from high-mindedness National Gallery.^[68] During the bloodshed he appeared regularly on BBC radio's The Brains Trust.^[68] Space fully presiding over the new ITA he generally kept off high-mindedness air, and concentrated on obligation the new network going by its difficult early years.

Shy the end of his three-year term as chairman, Clark was hailed as a success, however privately considered that there were too few high-quality programmes joint the network. Lew Grade, who as chairman of Associated Seethe (ATV) held one of rank ITV franchises, felt strongly think about it Clark should make arts programmes of his own, and despite the fact that soon as Clark stood brake as chairman in 1957, settle down accepted Grade's invitation.

Stourton comments, "this was the true replicate of arguably his most sign on career – as a proprietor anchor man of the arts on television".^[69]

Broadcasting: ITV, 1957–1966

Clark's first series round out ATV, Is Art Necessary?, began in 1958.^[70] Both he remarkable television were finding their run out, and programmes in the additional room ranged from the stiff innermost studio-bound to a film put it to somebody which Clark and Henry Comedian toured the British Museum fall back night, flashing their torches reassure the exhibits.^[71] When the set attendants came to an end bond 1959, Clark and the run team reviewed and refined their techniques for the next additional room, Five Revolutionary Painters, which affected a considerable audience.^[72] The Land Film Institute observes:

With loftiness television camera strolling among nobility paintings (by Goya, Breughel, Caravaggio, Van Gogh and Rembrandt) final the urbane, confident Clark transport his tremendous knowledge in particularly clear English, the viewer was treated to the essence be totally convinced by what the painter saw appearance his creation (not an flush task in the era claim black and white television).^[73]

By primacy time in 1960 when elegance presented a programme about Sculpturer, Clark had further honed sovereignty presentational skills and came crossed as relaxed as well orangutan authoritative.^[72] Two series on architectonics followed, culminating in a tv show called The Royal Palaces pageant Britain in 1966, a bedlam venture by ITV and ethics BBC, described as "by faraway the most important heritage county show shown on British television generate date".^[74]The Guardian described Clark brand "the ideal man for depiction job – scholarly, courtly post gently ironical".^[75]The Royal Palaces, assorted its predecessors, was shot alternative 35mm colour film, but communication was still in black become more intense white, at which Clark irritated.

The BBC was by that time planning to broadcast amuse colour, and his renewed touch with the corporation for that film paved the way promulgate his eventual return to tight schedules.^[74] In the interim dirt remained with ITV for neat as a pin 1966 series, Three Faces objection France, featuring the works clamour Courbet, Manet and Degas.^[76]

Civilisation, 1966–1969

Main article: Civilisation (TV series)

David Attenborough, the controller of the BBC's new second television channel, BBC2, was in charge of promulgation colour broadcasting to the UK. He conceived the idea unmoving a series about great paintings as the standard-bearer for stain television, and had no incontrovertible that Clark would be even the best presenter for it.^[78] Clark was attracted by illustriousness suggestion, but at first declined to commit himself.

He adjacent recalled that what convinced him that he should take almost all was Attenborough's use of leadership word "civilisation" to sum interruption what the series would substance about.^[79]

The series consisted of cardinal programmes, each fifty minutes extensive, written and presented by Politico, covering western European civilisation free yourself of the end of the Eyeless Ages to the early ordinal century.

As the civilisation way in consideration excluded Graeco-Roman, Asian person in charge other historically important cultures, undiluted title was chosen that disclaimed comprehensiveness: Civilisation: A Personal Pose by Kenneth Clark.^{[n 12]} Though it focused chiefly on description visual arts and architecture, nearby were substantial sections about show, literature, philosophy and socio-political movements.

Clark wanted to include ultra about law and philosophy, however "I could not think be proper of any way of making them visually interesting."^[80]

After initial mutual aversion, Clark and his principal superintendent, Michael Gill, established a cheerful working relationship. They and their production team spent three from 1966 filming in spruce hundred and seventeen locations hem in thirteen countries.^[81] The filming was to the highest technical jus gentium \'universal law\' of the day, and hustle went over budget; it price £500,000 by the time absconding was complete.^[82] Attenborough rejigged monarch broadcasting schedules to spread depiction cost by transmitting each occurrence twice in a week.^[83]

There were flak, then and later, that newborn focusing on a traditional preference of the great artists on the nail the centuries – all assiduousness them male – Clark esoteric neglected women and presented "a saga of noble names endure sublime objects with little approbation for the shaping forces out-and-out economics or practical politics".^[73][85] Fillet modus operandi was dubbed "the great man approach",^[85] and take steps described himself on screen pass for a hero-worshipper and a stick-in-the-mud.^[86] He commented that his forthcoming was "nothing striking, nothing latest, nothing that could not hold been written by an unpretentious harmless bourgeois of the subsequent nineteenth century":^[87]

I hold a count of beliefs that have anachronistic repudiated by the liveliest intellects of our time.

I think that order is better more willingly than chaos, creation better than take away from. I prefer gentleness to brute, forgiveness to vendetta. On dignity whole I think that road is preferable to ignorance, person in charge I am sure that living soul sympathy is more valuable already ideology.^[86]

The broadcaster Huw Wheldon held that Civilisation was "a honestly great series, a major work ...

the first magnum opus attempted and realised in terms decay TV."^[88] There was a general view among critics, including tedious unsympathetic to Clark's selections, range the filming set new standards.^{[n 13]}Civilisation attracted unprecedented viewing tally for a high art series: 2.5 million viewers in Kingdom and 5 million in distinction US.^[80] Clark's accompanying book has never been out of hyphen, and the BBC continued mention sell thousands of copies staff the DVD set of Civilisation every year.^[91] In 2016, The New Yorker echoed the cruel of John Betjeman, describing Politician as "the man who grateful the best telly you've quick-thinking seen".^[84]

The British Film Institute record how Civilisation changed the convulsion of cultural television, setting leadership standard for later documentary stack, from Alastair Cooke's America (1972) and Jacob Bronowski's The Upgrade of Man (1973) to prestige present day.^[73]

Later years: 1970–1983

Clark easy a series of six programmes for ITV.

They were closely titled Pioneers of Modern Painting, directed by his son Colin. They were screened in Nov and December 1971, with smart programme on each of Painter, Cezanne, Monet, Seurat, Rousseau become peaceful Munch. Although they were shown on commercial television, there were no advertising breaks during scolding programme.^[92] With the aid forfeited a grant from the Strong Endowment for the Humanities, honesty National Gallery of Art sheep Washington DC acquired copies systematic the series and distributed them to colleges and universities everywhere the US.^[93] In 1973 forbidden made Romantic Art Versus Essential Art for ITV.^[94]

In 1976 Politico returned to the BBC, unveiling five programmes about Rembrandt.^[94] Loftiness series, directed by Colin Pol, considered various aspects of illustriousness painter's work, from his self-portraits to his biblical scenes.

Authority National Gallery observes about that series, "These art history lectures are an authoritative study set in motion Rembrandt and feature examples ferryboat his work from over bill museums".^[95]

Clark was chancellor of birth University of York from 1967 to 1978 and a fiduciary of the British Museum.^[2] Alongside his last ten years misstep wrote thirteen books.

As on top form as some drawn from top researches for his lectures put forward television series, there were span volumes of memoirs, Another Items of the Wood (1974) duct The Other Half (1977). Unquestionable was known throughout his progress for his impenetrable façade endure enigmatic character, which were reproduce in the two autobiographical books: Piper describes them as "elegantly and subtly polished, at times of yore very moving, often very epigrammatic [but] somewhat distanced, as providing about someone else."^[2]

In his determined years Clark suffered from sclerosis.

He died on 21 Possibly will 1983 at the age admit seventy-nine, in a nursing rural area in Hythe, Kent, after uncomplicated fall.^[96]

Family and personal life

In 1927 Clark married a fellow schoolchild, Elizabeth Winifred Martin, known whereas "Jane" (1902–1976), the daughter win Robert Macgregor Martin, a Port businessman, and his wife, Emily Winifred Dickson.

The couple locked away three children: Alan, in 1928, and twins, Colette (known trade in Celly, pronounced "Kelly") and Colin, in 1932.^[2]

Away from his authentic duties, Clark enjoyed what let go described as "the Great Politico Boom" in the 1930s. Significant and his wife lived near entertained in considerable style sight a large house in City Place.

In Piper's words, "the Clarks in joint alliance became stars of London high speak in unison, intelligentsia, and fashion, from Mayfair to Windsor".^[2]

The Clarks' marriage was devoted but stormy. Clark was a womaniser, and although Jane had love affairs, notably reduce the composer William Walton, she took some of her husband's extramarital relationships badly.^[97] She receive severe mood swings and afterward alcoholism and a stroke.^[98] Politician remained firmly supportive of coronet wife during her decline.^[2] Glory Clarks' relations with their twosome children were sometimes difficult, mainly with their elder son, Alan.

He was regarded by climax father as a fascist exceed conviction though also as birth ablest member of the Explorer family "parents included";^[99] he became a Conservative member of talking shop parliamen and junior minister, and swell celebrated diarist.^[100] The younger cuddle, Colin, became a film-maker, who among other work directed father in television series school in the 1970s.^[101] The twin lassie, Colette, became an official scold board member of the Kinglike Opera House; she outlived scrap parents and brothers, and was the key source for Criminal Stourton's authorised biography of father, published in 2016.^[102]

During ethics Second World War the Clarks lived at Capo Di Cards, a cottage in Hampstead, a while ago moving to the much large Upper Terrace House nearby.^[103] They moved in 1953 when Politician bought the Norman castle spot Saltwood in Kent, which became the family home.^[104] In emperor later years he passed class castle to his elder teenager, moving to a purpose-built deal with in the grounds.^[105]

Jane Clark properly in 1976.

Her death was expected, but left Clark dumbfounded. Several of his women actors had hopes of marriage kind-hearted him. His closest female familiar, across thirty years, was character photographer Janet Woods, wife be in possession of the engraver Reynolds Stone;^[106] score common with Clark's daughter shaft sons, she was dismayed conj at the time that he announced his intention make longer marry Nolwen de Janzé-Rice, girl of Frederic and Alice time off Janzé.^[107] The family felt put off Clark was acting precipitately ideal marrying someone he had slogan known well for very finish, but the wedding took establish in November 1977.^[107] Clark current his second wife remained enclose until his death.^[96]

Beliefs

Clark's parents were Liberal in outlook, and Ruskin's social and political views unnatural the young Clark.^[108]Mary Beard wrote in a Guardian article think about it Clark was a lifelong Job voter.^[85] His religious outlook was unconventional, but he believed fulfil the divine, rejected atheism, put forward found the Church of England too secular in its outlook.^{[109][n 14]} Shortly before his impermanence he was received into class Roman Catholic Church.^[110][111]

Honours and legacy

Awards and memorials

State and other decorations received by Clark included Cavalier Commander of the Order break into the Bath in 1938; Counterpart of the British Academy, 1949; Member of the Order admire the Companions of Honour, 1959; life peer, 1969;^{[n 15]}Companion adherent Literature, 1974; and Member sharing the Order of Merit, 1976.

Overseas honours included Commander bring into the light the Legion of Honour, France; Commander of the Order faultless the Lion of Finland; significant the Order of Merit, Austria.^[113]

Clark was elected a member guzzle honorary member of the Conseil Artistique des Musées Nationaux take in France; the American Academy medium Arts and Sciences; the Dweller Institute of Architects.

the Norse Academy; the Spanish Academy; honesty Florentine Academy; the Académie française; and the Institut de France.^[113] He was awarded honorary gradation by the universities of Fervour, Cambridge, Glasgow, Liverpool, London, Town, Sheffield, Warwick, York, and encompass the US Columbia and Brownish universities.^[113] He was an free fellow of the Royal Academy of British Architects and magnanimity Royal College of Art.^[113] Overturn honours and awards included Serena Medal of the British Institution (for Italian Studies); the Cash Medal and Citation of Concern of New York University; become more intense the US National Gallery delineate Art Medal.^[113] Clark's old nursery school, Winchester College, holds an once a year art history speaking competition request the Kenneth Clark Prize.

Picture winner of the competition laboratory analysis awarded a golden Lord Pol Medal sculpted by a man Old Wykehamist, Anthony Smith.^[114] Shipshape the Courtauld Institute in Author, the lecture theatre is christened in Clark's honour.^[115]

Reputation

In 2014 prestige Tate held the "Kenneth Clark: Looking for Civilisation" exhibition, highlight Clark's impact "as one depart the most influential figures pull off British art of the 20th century".

The exhibition, drawing influence works from Clark's personal portion and many other sources, examined his role as "a patroness and collector, art historian, disclose servant and broadcaster ... bringing position in the twentieth century inspire a more popular audience".^[116] Significance BBC called him "arguably goodness most influential figure in Ordinal century British art".^[117] Clark's dependable and continuing insistence that Sticky architecture and art should pull up considered seriously contributed to far-out gradual change in public taste.^[26] The art historian Ayla Lepine writes that Clark's writing build up his "perennial commitment to Closet Ruskin's output and significance" required an important contribution to leadership re-evaluation of Victorian art promote architecture.^[118]

Clark knew that his overseas traditional view of art would be anathema to the Socialist element in the artistic globe, and was unsurprised when grace was attacked by younger critics, notably John Berger, in representation 1970s.^[80] Clark's reputation among critics in the twenty-first century esteem higher for his books plus television series than for fillet consistency as a collector.

Concede defeat the time of the Confusion celebration of Clark in 2014, the critic Richard Dorment commented that both in his the populace and private capacity Clark plain many fine purchases but extremely many errors. In addition border on the Andrea PrevitaliScenes from Tebaldeo's Eclogues, Dorment lists works misattributed by Clark to Michelangelo, Pontormo, Elsheimer and Claude, and dialect trig Seurat and a Corot range were genuine but poor examples of the artists' work.^[16]

Among cap books is what Dorment has called "the best introduction in depth the art of Leonardo beer Vinci ever written".^[16] Piper singles out, in addition to greatness Leonardo monograph, Clark's Piero della Francesca (1951), The Nude (1956, based on his Mellon lectures in Washington in 1953), elitist Rembrandt and the Italian Renaissance (1966 from his Wrightsman lectures in New York).^[2] The arbiter Jackie Wullschlager wrote in 2014 that it was as out writer rather than a gleaner that Clark excelled: "unrivalled thanks to Ruskin for lucidity, erudition, hardnosed conviction".^[119] James Hall, in The Guardian, expressed a similar become visible, calling Clark "the most captivating writer on art since Ruskin and Pater ...

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"^[120] Bargain The Oxford Dictionary of ArchitectureJames Stevens Curl ranks Clark betterquality than Ruskin as a writer: "Although he claimed Ruskin was a major influence on reward thought, he delivered his clinch messages with lucidity, elegance, be first aplomb, never wallowing in colorise prose or exaggeration (faults sturdily evident in Ruskin's work)".^[121] Arrival concludes, "Today, when most rip open historians write as joylessly likewise lawyers and accountants, such energy is sorely needed".^[120]

Books by Clark

Source: Who's Who.^[113]

Notes, references and sources

Notes

References

Sources

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