John Edward Clement Twarowski White,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, FSA (4 October 1924 – 6 November 2021) was a British

art historian Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

and was formerly the head of the Department of History of Art at the

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

(UCL). In 1992 he was made an Honorary Fellow of UCL. He was also the author of a number of books on

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

and

Renaissance art Renaissance art (1350 – 1620 AD) is the painting, sculpture, and decorative arts of the period of European history known as the Renaissance, which emerged as a distinct style in Italy in about AD 1400, in parallel with developments which occ ...

, as well as on the artist

Duccio Duccio di Buoninsegna ( , ; – ) was an Italian painter active in Siena, Tuscany, in the late 13th and early 14th century. He was hired throughout his life to complete many important works in government and religious buildings around Italy. Ducc ...

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

Biography

White went straight from

Ampleforth College Ampleforth College is a co-educational independent day and boarding school in the English public school tradition located in the village of Ampleforth, North Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1802 as a boys' school, it is situated in the groun ...

to the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

, where he became a

Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Griff ...

flying instructor based in Canada. After the war he returned to the United Kingdom and became a student of

Anthony Blunt Anthony Frederick Blunt (26 September 1907 – 26 March 1983), styled Sir Anthony Blunt KCVO from 1956 to November 1979, was a leading British art historian and Soviet spy. Blunt was professor of art history at the University of London, dire ...

at the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

. White has a number of mentions in Blunt's biography. White then went to

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, He then took a succession of academic positions; first, at the Art History department at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

, then Alexander White Visiting Professor at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

(1958); then Pilkington Professor of history of art at

University of Manchester , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

and director of

Whitworth Art Gallery The Whitworth is an art gallery in Manchester, England, containing about 55,000 items in its collection. The gallery is located in Whitworth Park and is part of the University of Manchester. In 2015, the Whitworth reopened after it was transfor ...

1959–66, then Ferens Visiting professor of fine art the

University of Hull The University of Hull is a public research university in Kingston upon Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1927 as University College Hull. The main university campus is located in Hull and is home to the Hull ...

1961–62; then Chairman of the Art Advisory Panel NW Museum and Art Gallery Services 1966–66; then professor of history of art and chairman Department of History of Art

Baltimore 1977–71; UCL: and finally Durning-Lawrence Professor of history of art at UCL 1971–90. White was also a poet; his published work includes a book of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

poems translated into

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and published in Japan called ''The Breath in the Flute''. His 24 collections of poetry are published online a
doneforhtedoing.com
In addition, he wrote a collection of permutation poems that can be found a
fifteenwords.com
Although not a

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

, he had had a long association with a Buddhist temple, Shogyoji, a Shin Buddhist (Pure Land) Temple in southern Japan, as well as a branch of the temple, Three Wheels, in London. His 28 lectures given at Shogyoji, given over the course of 30 years, will soon be published online in English and Japanese at talksatshogyoji.com. In the 1990s he also served on the Armed Forces Pay Review body which advises the UK government on armed forces salaries. In his later years, White was a

glider Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...

pilot, having taken up gliding 50 years after he last piloted a Spitfire. He flew at The

London Gliding Club The London Gliding Club (LGC) is a members' club whose airfield is located at the foot of the Dunstable Downs. Many privately owned gliders are based there. It has the facilities to train pilots in powerless flight, and in the skills necessary t ...

Dunstable Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...

and held the diamond certificate for glider pilots, having completed 500 km and 25.000 in altitude (achieved after his 80th birthday). He lived in London. White had been collaborating with Prof. Taira Sato on new translations of the Haiku of three Japanese haiku masters who lived 500 years ago. The first book, 5 7 5 The Haiku of Basho, was published this year containing new translations of three hundred haiku. This mammoth work was started after his 93rd birthday. White died on 6 November 2021, at the age of 97.The Times – Births, marriages and deaths: November 16, 2021
/ref>

Selected works

* ''The Birth and Rebirth of Pictorial Space'', London : Faber and Faber, 1957. *
book reviewed by Alfred Neumeyer
in ''The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism'', Vol. 17, No. 1 (Sep. 1958), pp. 130–131, Blackwell Publishing on behalf of The American Society for Aesthetics * ''Art and Architecture in Italy, 1250 to 1400'', London/Baltimore : Penguin Books, 1966, 2nd edn 1987 (now Yale History of Art series). * ''5 7 5 The Haiku of Basho''. 2019. John White and Taira Sato. A new translation. * ''Done For The Doing'', Web
doneforthedoing.com
* ''Fifteen Words, A collection of permutation poetry''
fifteenwords.com

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:White, John 1924 births 2021 deaths English art historians Academics of University College London Alumni of the Courtauld Institute of Art Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Johns Hopkins University faculty People educated at Ampleforth College Royal Air Force pilots of World War II English expatriates in the United States British glider pilots