LEONORA CARRINGTON
BIOGRAPHY
Artist
Art Brokerage: Leonora Carrington British Artist: B. 1917-2011. Carrington was born in Clayton Green, Chorley, Lancashire, England. Her father was a wealthy textile manufacturer, and her mother, Maureen (née Moorhead), was Irish. She had three brothers: Patrick, Gerald, and Arthur. Educated by governesses, tutors, and nuns, she was expelled from two schools, including New Hall School, Chelmsford, for her rebellious behavior, until her family sent her to Florence where she attended Mrs Penrose's Academy of Art. Her father opposed her career as an artist, but her mother encouraged her. She returned to England and was presented at Court, but according to her, she brought a copy of Aldous Huxley's Eyeless in Gaza (1936) to read instead. In 1935, she attended the Chelsea School of Art in London for one year, and with the help of her father's friend Serge Chermayeff, she was able to transfer to Ozenfant Academy in London (1935–38). In 1927, at the age of ten, she saw her first Surrealist painting in a Left Bank gallery and met many Surrealists, including Paul Éluard. She became familiar with Surrealism from a copy of Herbert Read's book, 'Surrealism' (1936), which was given to her by her mother. She received little encouragement from her family to forge an artistic career. Matthew Gale, a curator at Tate Modern, singled out the Surrealist poet and patron Edward James as the only champion of her work in Britain. James bought many of her paintings and arranged a show in 1947 for her work at Pierre Matisse's Gallery in New York. Some works are still hanging at his former family home, currently West Dean College in West Dean, West Sussex. Listings wanted by Art Brokerage.
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