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 and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

, the son of a coppersmith. He attended Goldsmiths College of Art from 1931 to 1934, before studying at the

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

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 Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...

. 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 in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

initially in 1947 and then on a regular basis thereafter. His first solo show was held at the

Leicester Galleries Leicester Galleries was an art gallery located in London from 1902 to 1977 that held exhibitions of modern British, French and international artists' works. Its name was acquired in 1984 by Peter Nahum, who operates "Peter Nahum at the Leiceste ...

in 1948. In 1951, the

Arts Council An arts council is a government or private non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts; mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing arts events. They often operate at arms-length from the government to prevent pol ...

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. Labour Party cabinet member Herbert Morrison was the prime mover; in 1947 he started with the ...

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 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 (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

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 Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th c ...

, 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 (), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art event in the Western world. At the ...

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 The Imperial War Museum (IWM), currently branded "Imperial War Museums", is a British national museum. It is headquartered in London, with five branches in England. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, it was intended to record the civ ...

, 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 UK ...

and several regional museums in the United Kingdom, including

Aberdeen Art Gallery Aberdeen Art Gallery is the main visual arts exhibition space in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1884 in a building designed by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, with a sculpture court added in 1905. In 1900, it received the art ...

, Leamington Spa Art Gallery and the collection of

Leeds University The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed ...

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 English war artists English male painters Painters from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Artists from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham British Special Operations Executive personnel World War II artists 20th-century British war artists Military personnel from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham People from Fulham