Post on 08-Oct-2020
ModernistSanctuary:Hampsteadinthe1930sand1940s
MonicaBohm-Duchen
JohnCooper’s mosaiconthef loorof theWharriecabbies’ shelter, RosslynHi l l , 1935,Hampstead,
London.
Astheabundanceofwallplaquesintheareatestifies,visualartistshavebeendrawntothephysicalandcultural
attractionsofHampstead1sincethelateeighteenthcentury.Itwasinthe1930sandearly1940s,however,thatthis
areaofnorth-westLondonoccupiedauniqueplaceinthestoryofBritishartandarchitecture–due,inlargemeasure,
tothenumberoftalentedémigrésfromNazi-dominatedEuropewhofoundrefugethere,andtheBritishindividuals
whowelcomed,supportedandworkedalongsidethem.AsFionaMacCarthyobservedin1984,‘Itsometimesseems
thateveryoneonehadeverheardofgravitatedtowardsHampstead’,adding,‘Hampsteadhasbecomeakindof
buzzwordforthethirties’.2Yet,althoughthefactisfrequentlymentionedinpassing,todatetoolittledetailed
attentionhasbeenpaidtothisrichlyrewardingtopicofculturalenquiry.3
By1940,therewereapproximately14,000(mostlyJewish)refugeeslivingintheHampsteadarea.‘WhatLouis
MacNeicecalled...[their]“gutturalsorrow”...pervadedthedistrict–peopleasnoticeablefortheirlooksasany
otherimmigrantgroup,andoftensimilarlywelcome’.4AndinNormanRosenthal’swords,‘ThereisawholeProustian
biographytobewrittenaboutthatlostworldthatstretchedfromSwissCottagetotheHeathandthatincludedthe
likes,ofcourse,ofSigmundFreudandEliasCanettiandmanyotherswhowouldcongregateincafessuchasthe
CosmotorelivethespiritoftheirlostCentralEuropeanworlds’.5
Thesmallbutgraceful,semi-detachedRegencyvillaat47DownshireHillNW3,purchasedbyFredandDiana
Uhlmaninlate1938,isasgoodaplaceasanytostarttogiveasenseofthearea’srichculturalhistory.Thefirstartist
tolivetherewasItalian-bornGaetanoMeo,acolourfulcharacterwhoearnedhislivingfirstasamodelforthePre-
Raphaelitecircle,andlaterasamosaicistofsomeaccomplishment.6When,duringtheFirstWorldWar,theCarline
familymovedintoNo.47,itsoonbecameameetingplaceforlike-mindedartists.RichardCarline,thekeyplayer,
wholivedinthehouseuntil1936(whenhemovedaroundthecornerto17PondStreet),laterrecalledthat
Myartistfamily–Georgemyfather,Sydney,Hildaandmyself,occupied47DownshireHill...andtheformerchurch
schoolopposite[at14A]provideduswithtwolargestudios.Withsuchamplespacewewereabletoentertainlarge
gatheringsofourartistfriends.BesidesLambandGertler,therewerethetwoSpencers,StanleyandGilbert,who
livedwithusforawhile,Ginner,EthelbertWhiteandNevinson,whoalllivedinHampstead,Macnamara,Dorothy
Brettandothers.7
His1924–5canvas,GatheringontheTerraceat47DownshireHill(nowattheFerensArtGallery,Hull),vividly
corroboratessuchverbalaccounts.
InHampstead,aselsewhere,the1930ssawadramaticseachange.ToquoteCarlineagain,
Inthethirtiestheatmospherehadcompletelychanged.Thesenseofdetachmentwithconstantaestheticdiscussions,
whichweretypicalofthetwenties,wastobeoverwhelmedbynewtheoriesandmovementsduringthenextdecade.
Artistsweretobecaughtupinthepoliticalandsocialuncertainties,withthreatstolibertyandtheshadowofwar,
fromwhichtheycouldnotremainaloof.8
AndasMacCarthyhasobserved,theIsobarattheLawnRoadFlats,animportantsocialhub,‘initsearlyyearshada
uniquequality,inseparablyrelatedtothattimeandplaceandpurpose.Anatmosphereofseriousintention...and
atthesametimeakindofqualityofcraziness,asenseofdislocation,brokenaccents,brokenmarriages.An
irresponsibilityengenderedbythenumberofarrivalsanddepartures,setagainstabackgroundofpolitical
uncertainty.’9
TheSpanishCivilWarof1936–9wasseenbymanytheworldoverasthetestinggroundforaglobalconflict
betweenfascismanddemocracy,and‘HampsteadManandHampsteadWoman,leftish,argumentative,alarmingly
progressive’10werenoexception.InthewordsofEdwardCarter,it‘hunglikeaburningdestructivesunoverall
politicalfeelingandwokeusagaintoawarenessoftheagonyandsufferingofwar...Hampstead...
characteristicallyglowedwithpartisanshipandeveryvarietyofpossibleandnearimpossibleactivityonbehalfofthe
Republicans’.11AletterfromEnglishInternationalBrigadevolunteersGeorgeandNanGreen,writtenin1938,speaks
volumes:‘Motherdear,we’renotmilitarists,noradventurersnorprofessionalsoldiers...toholdthelinehereand
nowmeansthatwecanpreventthisbattlebeingfoughtagainlateronHampsteadHeathorthehillsofDerbyshire’.12
AndaspoetLouisMacNeice,aHampsteadresident,observedinhis1939AutumnJournal,inSpain‘ourbluntideals
wouldfindtheirwhetstone’.13
AsAntonyPenrose’saccountofhisfather’sactivities14makesclear,RolandPenrosewasakeyfigurein
galvanisinglike-mindedartistsintoexpressingtheirsupportfortheSpanishRepublicancause,andintocriticisingthe
BritishGovernmentforsittingonthepoliticalfence.Evenapparentlyapolitical,artisticallyunalignedfiguressuchas
HenryMooreaddedtheirnamestothe1936SurrealistmanifestoprotestingagainstBritishnon-intervention.In
1938,MooredesignedanotherBritishSurrealistbroadsheetonasimilartheme,andin1939producedhisfirst
lithograph,calledSpanishPrisoner,intendedtoraisemoneyfortheRepublicancause.15BarbaraHepworthtoodid
herbit,byproducingawoodenmaquetteforanunrealised,abstractMonumenttotheSpanishCivilWar(1938–9),
whichwasdestroyedduringtheSecondWorldWar.
AlthoughfarlessnumerousthantheonlyslightlylaterinfluxofrefugeesfromNaziEurope,Spanishrefugeesalso
foundtheirwaytoHampstead–amongthemartistandRepublicanpoliticianFrancescGalí,who,yearsearlier,had
taughtJoanMiróinBarcelonaandwhoinitiallylivedatthehomeofarthistorianandgalleristEwanPhillips.16Wilfred
Roberts,brotherofWinifredNicholson(Ben’sfirstwife),LiberalMPforNorthCumberland(1935–50)andaleading
figureintheBasqueChildren’sCommittee,theNationalJointCommitteeforSpanishReliefandotherreliefbodies–
andthuspopularlyknownasthe‘MPforSpain’–livedinKeatsGroveduringthisperiod.
Penroselaterrecalled,
WhenIreturnedtoLondonin1935,havingspentsomethirteenyearsinFrance,IfoundinHampsteadaclimate
whichhadsomeslightresemblancetothatwhichIhadleftinParis...Havingbeenawayforsolong,Ihadlost
contactwithmyowngenerationinEngland,andifithadnotbeenforthecolonyofartiststhatIdiscoveredaround
mewhenIsettledinDownshireHill,itcouldhavetakenmealongtimetofindmyfeetagaininmynativetown.17
AsCarlineobserved,‘ItwastothewestofHampsteadinFitzjohn’sAvenuethatfashionableandprosperousartists
[suchasPhilipdeLászló18]settledinthelateVictorianandEdwardianera.OldHampsteadwasadilapidated
neighbourhood...TheyoungerandprogressiveartiststookafancytooldHampstead...’19
BySeptember1938,when–undertheshadowoftheMunichAgreement–FredandDianaUhlmanmovedinto
theirhouse,the‘progressive’artisticpresenceinDownshireHillanditsenvironswaswellestablished,andthearea
wasnolongerquitesodilapidated.PenrosehadmovedintoNo.21inearly1936(tobejoinedinmid-1939byLee
Miller);intherun-uptoandduringthewaryears,Belgian-bornE.L.T.Mesens,Penrose’scompanion-at-armsand
directoroftheradicalifshort-livedLondonGallery,wouldalsolivethere.Avant-gardeartpatronandcollector
MargaretGardiner,herselfpartlyofEuropean-Jewishdescent,andherpartner,pioneeringcrystallographerand
ardentCommunist,JohnDesmondBernal,livedalmostoppositePenroseatNo.35.20Amongherotheranti-fascist
activities,GardinerwasHonorarySecretaryofanon-partypoliticalorganisationcalledForIntellectualLiberty,
foundedinearly1936andactiveuntil1940,intendedas‘arallyingpointforthoseintellectualworkerswhofeltthat
theconditionoftheworldcalledfortheactivedefenceofpeace,liberty,andculture’.21ItisevidentthatGardiner,
PenroseandtheUhlmanswereattheveryheartofanetworkofindividualsintentonlendingpracticalandmoral
supporttorefugeeartists.22
Theywerenottheonlyones,however.OtherHampsteadresidentsshouldalsoreceivetheirdueinthisrespect–
amongthem,sculptorandeducationalistBettyRea,whowasSecretaryoftheArtists’InternationalAssociation
between1934and1936,andlivedatthePennStudios,13aRudallCrescent.Thelatterwasalsooneofthe
HampsteadresidencesofMarkGertler.Althoughthesonofadifferentimmigrantgeneration,havingmovedto
HampsteadfromtheEastEndofLondonin1915,thefactthathewasoneofthesignatoriesofalettersentto
potentialbenefactorsbytheArtists’RefugeeCommittee(ARC)inlate1938,suggeststhathetoowishedtoplaya
partinhelpingthenewwaveofimmigrants.
MuirheadandhissonStephenBone,bothleadinglightsintheARC,werealsobasedinHampstead,aswasMarie
SturgeMoore(wifeofwriterandartistThomasSturgeMoore),whoapparentlytookresponsibilityforensuringthat
theartistswereadequatelyfed.ActorWalterHudd(usuallycastinsupportingandcharacterroles,initiallyaspartof
thestableofactorsassociatedwithHungarianémigréAlexanderKorda’sLondonFilms23)playedhost,itseems,to
Hans(Johannes)Schellenberger,founder-memberoftheFreeGermanLeagueofCulture(FGLC).Mentionshould
alsobemadeofCanadian-borndesignerAustinCooper,directorofthepioneeringReimannSchool,wholivedat34
DownshireHill,24andofRichardCarline(again)andart-worldeminenceKennethClark,wholivedinasuitably
patricianvillacalled‘CapodiMonte’inWindmillHill,nearWhitestonePond–allofwhomweresignatoriesofthe
aforementionedARCletter.25
Thepresenceof(inHerbertRead’smemorablephrase)a‘nestofgentleartists’26–BarbaraHepworth,Ben
Nicholson,HenryMooreetalia–ashort-ishwalkfromDownshireHillattheMallStudiosinTaskerRoad,27aswellas
thatofPaulNashinnearbyEldonGrove,hadnodoubtactedasanincentiveforPenrosetomovetothearea.
AsAnnelyJudaputit,
Thesewerethedifficultyearsleadinguptothewar.InapartofLondon,Hampstead,therewasagroupofgreat
artistslivingneartoeachotherincludingGabo,Hepworth,Moholy-Nagy,Mondrian,MooreandNicholson.Atthe
timetheyproducedtheirartquietlyandmodestlybutnowwerecognizethattheirabstractworkswereamongthe
mostradicalbeingmadeinBritain.28
ThroughtheinterventionofWinifredandBenNicholsonaswellasNaumGabo,PietMondrianlivedastone’sthrow
awayfromtheMallStudiosat60ParkhillRoadbetween1938and1940(before–likeWalterGropius,MarcelBreuer
andLászlóMoholy-Nagy–movingontotheUSA).Gabohimselflivedforawhileatnearby11LawnRoad,closeto
theIsokonBuilding,which,thankstoJackandMollyPritchard,providedatemporaryabodefortheseBauhaus
luminaries.ModernistarchitectErnöGoldfingerbuiltahouseforhimselfin1939atnearby2WillowRoad,which
duringthewarnotonlyplayedhosttoartclassesfortraumatisedchildrenbutin1942wasthevenuefora
fundraisingexhibitionorganisedinassociationwiththeAidtoRussiaFundoftheNationalCouncilofLabour.29Rarely
noticedorcommentedon,thefloorofahumblerefreshmentkioskonRosslynHill–the‘WharrieCabmen’sShelter’
of1935,sportingacolourfulabstractmosaiccreatedbyartistJohnCooperandhisstudents30–bearsunusual
witnesstothisbrieffloweringofthegeometricavant-gardeinHampstead.
Notes
1. Strictlyspeaking,theareainwhichtheémigréscongregatedalsoembracesBelsizePark(like
Hampsteadvillage,partofLondonNW3)andWestHampstead(NW6)–and,toalesserextent,
StJohn’sWood(NW8)andGoldersGreen(NW11).
2. FionaMacCarthy,IntroductiontoJackPritchard,ViewfromaLongChair,Routledge&KeganPaul,
London,1984,pp22and9.
3. MichaelBird’sbook,TheStIvesArtists:ABiographyofPlaceandTime,LundHumphries,London,2008,
forexample,includesachapterentitled‘ConnectingCircles:ADetourviaHampstead’,inwhich
HampsteadisseenaslittlemorethanastopoverenroutetoCornwall.
4. JeremyAdler,IntroductiontoEliasCanetti,PartyintheBlitz:TheEnglishYears(transl.Michael
Hofmann),HarvillPress,London,2005.
5. NormanRosenthal,IntroductiontoNicolaBaird(ed.),FredUhlman,BurghHouseandHampstead
Museum,London,2018,p.7.
6. Meoappearstohavetakenupresidenceinthe1880s,introducedtotheareaeitherbyDante
GabrielRossetti,whohadearlierlivedinthestreet,orbyFordMadoxBrown,whohadlodgedin
Hampsteadwhileworkingonhisiconiccanvas,Work,of1852–63.
7. RichardCarline,‘DownshireHillandtheHampsteadGatherings’,inK.JacobsonandC.Wade,
StanleySpencer:AHampsteadVision,HampsteadMuseum,London,1991(unpaginated).
8. RichardCarline, ‘RichardCarline andhisCircle’, inHampstead in theThirties:ACommittedDecade,
exh.cat.,CamdenArtsCentre,London,1974,p.8.
9. MacCarthy,Insiders/Outsiders,LundHumphries,London,2019,Introduction,p.22.
10. ibid.,p.9.
11. EdwardCarter,‘TheSocial/ArchitecturalBackground’,inHampsteadintheThirties,p.27.
12. Quoted in Paul Preston,The Spanish CivilWar: DreamsandNightmares, exh.cat, ImperialWar
Museum,London,2001,p.27.
13. LouisMacNeice,AutumnJournal,Faber&Faber,London,1939.
14. AntonyPenrose,Insiders/Outsiders,LundHumphries,London,2019,chapter16.
15. Bythetimethelithographwasready,however,Francohadwonthewar.
16. Seewww.ithellcolquhoun.co.uk/i_palpitates_with_joy.htm.
17. RolandPenrose,‘HampsteadandSurrealismintheThirties’,inHampsteadintheThirties,p.37.
18. Ironically,Hungarian-bornsocietyportraitistdeLászlóhadbeencommissionedintheinterwar
periodtopaintDianaUhlman’sparents,theFirstLordCroftandTheHon.NancyBeatriceBorwick,
LadyCroft.
19. Carline,‘RichardCarlineandhisCircle’,p.8.
20. Gardiner’sfinecollectionofworksbytheartistswhomshesupportedlongbeforetheybecame
famous–notably,HepworthandBenNicholson–formthebasisofthepermanentcollectionofthe
PierArtCentre,Stromness,Orkney.
21. ‘Bulletinno.1’ofForIntellectualLiberty.TheorganisationwasformedinFebruary1936followinga
conferenceinPariscalledbythe‘ComitédeVigilancedesIntellectuelsAntifascistes’.Membersheld
meetings,wrotetothepressandlobbiedtheirMPs.Inthelate1930s,theywerealsoinvolvedin
schemesofpracticalassistanceforrefugees.OthermembersincludedVirginiaWoolfandAldous
Huxley.Seewww.nature.com/articles/139188c0.pdf.
22. Beyondtheartworld,financierOttoSchiffnotonlyhelpedthousandsofJewsto
escapeNaziEuropebutalsoopeneduphishomeinNetherhallGardensasaplace
ofrefuge.ÉmigréactorAntonWalbrook,wholivedat69Frognal,didmuchtohelp
refugeeslessfortunatethanhimself,whileRegentsParkboardingschoolat5
MaresfieldGardenswassetupspecificallytocatertotheneedsofchildrefugees.At
No.20MaresfieldGardens,AnnaFreudandhercolleaguessetuptheHampstead
WarNurseriestotakecareofandobservetraumatisedchildren.
23. AlexanderKordalivedinAvenueRoad,NW8,whilehislessextravagantand
ostentatiousartistbrother,Vincent,livedinWellWalk.Itwasherethatheworked
onthedesignsforthescience-fictionfilmThingstoCome(1936),towhichLászló
Moholy-Nagyalsocontributed.
24. AlsoworthamentionhereisthediscreetlyModernisthouseat13DownshireHill
designedinthemid-1930sbyMichaelandCharlotteBunney.Hampstead’swealthof
ModernistarchitectureistouchedoninAlanPowers’essayinInsiders/Outsiders,
LundHumphries,London,2019,chapter2.
25. Clark’ssecretarywashalf-GermanHelenRoeder(partnerofCarelWeight),whowas
alsosecretaryoftheArtists’RefugeeCommittee.
CorrespondenceintheTateArchiverevealsthatshewrotetohimtoenlisthissupport
fortheARC(TGA8812/1/4/152/5).
26. HerbertRead.‘ANestofGentleArtists’,Apollo,vol.LXXVI,no.7,September1962,pp536–
40,reprintedinBenedictReadandDavidThistlewood(eds),HerbertRead:ABritishVision
ofWorldArt,LundHumphries,London,1993,pp59–63.
27. TheMallStudioshadbeenbuiltin1872;earlierresidentsmayhaveincluded
WalterSickert.Inthe1930s,inadditiontoHepworthandNicholsonatNo.7(the
formerhadpreviouslylivedattheStudioswithherfirsthusbandJohnSkeaping),
CecilStephensonlivedatNo.6andHerbertReadatNo.3.Moorelivedatnearby11a
ParkhillRoadandArthurJackson,Hepworth’scousin,atNo.22ParkhillRoad.
28. AnnelyJuda,Foreword,TheThirties:InfluencesonAbstractArtinBritain,exh.cat.,Annely
JudaFineArt,London,1998.
29. GoldfingerwasalsocloselyinvolvedwiththeArtistsAidRussiaexhibitionheldatthe
WallaceCollectioninJuly/August1942.
30. ThestudentsmayhavebelongedtotheEastLondonGroupofnon-professional,
working-classartists.Moreresearch,however,needstobedoneintothisunusual
project.