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With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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In an idle moment, I stumbled across the Graham Sutherland portrait of Sir Winston Churchill, which he and Clemmie hated so much that she had it destroyed.  Looking at it afresh (I tried to copy and paste it, but the file's too big) I CAN see that it makes him look old, ravaged, and on his way out of the door; and all politicians are vain - Churchill being no exception. But I also think it was a great portrait, and its loss is a real one - wondering what others think? 

Jenny Harris

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I think this is the one

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by Jenny Harris

Waddesdon Grotesque

Andrew Roles

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I think it makes him look like the elder statesman that he was, so it was pure vanity and vandalism  to have it destroyed. A shame. 

Alan Bickley

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It was a superbly represented portrait and a dreadful act of vandalism!
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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Good - glad it wasn't just me who thought so.  What I couldn't understand about this was that Churchill was a painter himself: I don't know if he had anything to do with the decision to destroy the painting, but if he did, how can one painter destroy the work of another?   Thanks to the internet, and prints, no painting need really die totally - though the original will have borne the marks of Sutherland's brush that no digital copy can emulate - so the destruction of it didn't even achieve anything.  It has troubled me for years: I find it impossible to understand.  

Sylvia Evans

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If I remember correctly it was Clementine his wife who put a knife through it.   It did make him look old .  Sad but they must have really hated it to do that.  If they disliked it so much I understand why.   Yes Churchill was a good amateur painter .    Sad also for Sutherland .  

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by Sylvia Evans

IMG_1547

Russell Edwards

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I've always thought it was a great portrait but was always mystified by the lack of feet.
IMG_3630

Paul (Dixie) Dean

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Yes he looked old but he was worn out after the war and of course his liking for a dram or two didn’t help . Such a awful thing to do to a painting even if yiu don’t like it , put it where I can’t be seen . 
Waddesdon Grotesque

Andrew Roles

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My view of Churchills painting ability has been somewhat tainted by Mel Brooks:  The Producers (1967)

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by Andrew Roles

With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, Napa

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Followed the link, though remembered the film; then another clip came up - a remake of the film.  Why?  When you have the perfect Zero Mostel, the equally perfect Gene Wilder, why make a copy with inferior actors?  I digress, of course - but I wish they wouldn't do things like that.
Waddesdon Grotesque

Andrew Roles

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The original was turned into a Broadway musical which was then filmed using the same actors as the musical. I think the original was perfect too, but for the record I do  like Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane  And we are going off-piste here 😁.

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by Andrew Roles