A review of “John Craxton: A Life of Gifts” by Ian Collins (2021, Yale University Press; 384 pages) “A Charmed Life” John Craxton lived a charmed life. He was evidently charming himself, and floating amongst a network of rich and Bohemian friends. He was never short of indulgent patrons, and I think the title of… Continue reading Greek Light
Tag: Art
Daring Daubers
Some books… This post is a review of some books about British Artists, mostly women, by women: Breaking Free Virginia Nicholson’s Among the Bohemians tells the extraordinary history of a group of artists and writers who overthrew conventions in both their art and their lives. Written by one of the family (her grandparents were Clive… Continue reading Daring Daubers
Colours – in Black & White
Chromorama: How Colour Changed Our Way of Seeing by Riccardo Falcinelli (2017, translated from Italian 2022, published by Penguin Random House 2025; 470 pages) What a beautifully illustrated, free-wheeling journey through history, art, graphic design, marketing, technology, science, and philosophy! This book is one of a kind, and it truly lives up to its subtitle… Continue reading Colours – in Black & White
Stories tumbled by the tides of time
Philip Hoare’s digressions and tangents balloon into sea monsters, bigger than the narrative boat we thought he was steering.
Outside, looking in
The Lighted Window: Evening Walks Remembered By Peter Davidson (Bodleian Library Publishing; 2021) The homeward traveller sees a distant light in the gathering gloom; a stranger looks up to the bright unshuttered window; in a distant tower, the light from a sputtering candle betrays the scholar late at his books. That figure on the road,… Continue reading Outside, looking in