11th Feb, 2026 11:00
The Estate of John Russell Taylor: Author, Critic, Collector
14
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009)
LANDSCAPE WITH FIGURE
dated 3.1.45 lower right; pencil and black chalk on paper; 20 x 32cm; 8 x 12 1/2in (33.5 x 45cm; 13 1/4 x 17 3/4in framed)
Provenance: William Murray (from whom purchased)
The present work, a page from a sketchbook, bears the considerable influence of Craxton’s greatest inspirations, including Pablo Picasso, Joan Miro, Graham Sutherland and Samuel Palmer. The subject and composition is typical of John Craxton’s work from the mid-1940s. Both surreal and Neo-romantic it belongs to a series of paintings, prints and drawings he produced focused on solitary figures. Later in life he would describe them as, ‘my means of escape and a sort of self protection. A shepherd is a lone figure, and so is a poet.’ Hemmed in by the structures of British society and the realities of war Craxton was, for a great many years, a man unsure of his place in the world.
He drew the present landscape at the same time that he was working on the illustrations for A Poet's Eye, an anthology of poetry selected by Geoffrey Grigson (see lot 286). Both the poetry and the art which decorates the book powerfully speaks to the escapist mood of wartime Britain. The somewhat menacing landscape of the work also finds inspiration from the time Craxton spent painting in Pembrokeshire, alongside his mentor, Graham Sutherland.
Sold for £6,500
LANDSCAPE WITH FIGURE
dated 3.1.45 lower right; pencil and black chalk on paper; 20 x 32cm; 8 x 12 1/2in (33.5 x 45cm; 13 1/4 x 17 3/4in framed)
Provenance: William Murray (from whom purchased)
The present work, a page from a sketchbook, bears the considerable influence of Craxton’s greatest inspirations, including Pablo Picasso, Joan Miro, Graham Sutherland and Samuel Palmer. The subject and composition is typical of John Craxton’s work from the mid-1940s. Both surreal and Neo-romantic it belongs to a series of paintings, prints and drawings he produced focused on solitary figures. Later in life he would describe them as, ‘my means of escape and a sort of self protection. A shepherd is a lone figure, and so is a poet.’ Hemmed in by the structures of British society and the realities of war Craxton was, for a great many years, a man unsure of his place in the world.
He drew the present landscape at the same time that he was working on the illustrations for A Poet's Eye, an anthology of poetry selected by Geoffrey Grigson (see lot 286). Both the poetry and the art which decorates the book powerfully speaks to the escapist mood of wartime Britain. The somewhat menacing landscape of the work also finds inspiration from the time Craxton spent painting in Pembrokeshire, alongside his mentor, Graham Sutherland.
Auction: The Estate of John Russell Taylor: Author, Critic, Collector, 11th Feb, 2026
Auction Location: London, UK
John Russell Taylor was a compulsive collector. When he died at the age of ninety, his two bedroom flat on the corner of Brook Green was floor to ceiling with books and pictures that he had collected over the last seventy years. A precocious talent he was awarded a scholarship to read English at Cambridge aged 16 and graduated with a starred First Class degree. Film, theatre and art critic for The Times for more than four decades, he wrote thousands of articles and reviews for the newspaper. He also wrote over sixty books – critical studies, biographies, and monographs. He was appointed professor of Film at the University of Southern California during the 1970s, when he was asked by Alfred Hitchcock to write his biography. Hitch remains the standard text on the film director. John's interests ranged across all aspects of the arts from Art Nouveau book illustration to Vorticism, fan paintings, poetry and stage design. Struck by the visual rather than the value of a work of art, the sale of his picture collection gives a flavour of the full gamut of his encyclopaedic mind, a man remembered for his phenomenal range of reference, his extraordinary talent for writing and his warm and generous character.
For a copy of the printed catalogue, email pictures@olympiaauctions.com
PUBLIC EXHIBITION
Friday 6th February: 10am - 5pm
Sunday 8th February: 12pm - 4pm
Monday 9th February: 10am - 8pm (Drinks: 5pm - 8pm)
Tuesday 10th February: 10am - 5pm
View Press Release for more information
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PUBLIC EXHIBITION
Friday 6th February: 10am - 5pm
Sunday 8th February: 12pm - 4pm
Monday 9th February: 10am - 8pm (Drinks: 5pm - 8pm)
Tuesday 10th February: 10am - 5pm
