Leonard Appelbee, (13 November 1914 – 12 June 2000), was an English painter and printmaker, most notable for his portraits and still-life paintings.

Life and work

Appelbee was born in

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

, the son of a coppersmith. He attended

Goldsmiths College of Art Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wor ...

from 1931 to 1934, before studying at the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

until 1938. In 1939 he produced a poster design, ''Wimbledon Championships'', for London Transport. Whilst at the RCA, Appelbee met his future wife, the artist Frances Macdonald. Appelbee served in the Army throughout World War II. Early in the war he was in charge of a mobile anti-aircraft battery before taking part in classified operations for the

Special Operations Executive The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its pu ...

. At the end of the war Appelbee completed two short commissions for the War Artists' Advisory Committee, one on returning former prisoners of war and the other of a scientist. After the war, Appelbee had works exhibited at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

initially in 1947 and then on a regular basis thereafter. His first solo show was held at the Leicester Galleries in 1948. In 1951, the Arts Council commissioned large paintings from both Appelbee and Macdonald for the exhibition ''60 Paintings for '51'', which was part of the

Festival of Britain The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people: ...

celebrations in London. Macdonald contributed a painting of Penrhyn Quarry, entitled ''The Welsh Singer'', whilst Appelbee produced the painting ''One-man Band''. Appelbee taught at the

Bournemouth College of Art Arts University Bournemouth (abbreviated AUB) is a further and higher education university based in Poole, England, specialising in art, performance, design, and media. It was formerly known as The Arts University College at Bournemouth and T ...

but lost his job after the College implemented the recommendations of the Coldstream Report on the future teaching of art. He continued to paint and exhibit. He produced a number of fine portraits, notably for both

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and

Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus"), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th century through to the early 19th century ...

, but was also well known for his still-life paintings of fish and other sea creatures. He also completed commissions for Sir Edward Marsh and for Essex County Council. In 1970, Appelbee won the Silver Medal at the

Paris Salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art ...

and in 1977 he had a solo show at Plymouth. After 1977, a badly broken leg inhibited him from standing at an easel to paint and he turned to picture framing and then to writing verse. An illustrated volume of his poetry, ''That Voice'' was published by the Hillside Press in 1980. In 1989 Appelbee and Macdonald moved from the West Country to Kincardine-on-Forth and then to Aberdeen, to be near their only daughter. Works by Appelbee are held in the

Imperial War Museum Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...

, the

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

and several regional museums in the United Kingdom, including Aberdeen Art Gallery,

Leamington Spa Art Gallery The Royal Pump Rooms is a cultural centre on the Parade in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. It was the most famous of several spa baths opened in Leamington between the late-18th and mid-19th centuries. People would travel from throughou ...

and the collection of

Leeds University , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Appelbee, Leonard 1914 births 2000 deaths 20th-century English male artists 20th-century English painters Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Alumni of the Royal College of Art British Army personnel of World War II British war artists English male painters Painters from London Artists from Fulham British Special Operations Executive personnel World War II artists Military personnel from Fulham