Nostalgia

The slightest breeze whisks a host of Rosebay-willow-herb progeny to float off high above our heads

Schools are back, and we have had our first Fine Art Society lecture following the summer break - Edvard Munch: Mother, Mistresses and Models. The talk was by a brilliant speaker who has inspired me to learn more about him and his life. I have never really understood Munch's paintings which predominately seem to be about his preoccupation with the emotions of isolation, melancholy, and despair. 

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National Gallery, Oslo, Norway

Munch's painting of 'The Scream' is a disturbing image, apparently his intention was to show an anxiety ridden vision of the soul. It is the second most universally recognised painting in the world - no prizes for guessing which is number one!

Making the most of these warm balmy September days

Savouring evening walks before the sun slips below the horizon - a little quicker each night

Like the turning hands on a clock the seasons roll on

The hedgerows and bushes are overflowing with seeds and fruits

There is still colour in the garden

folklore predicts and heralds a harsh winter

following a bountiful season of berries
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I am heading off in a few days to the land of my childhood 

My ballet teacher gave my poor mother the task of dying white towelling brown and then the job of making me this fox outfit. I recall my father spending time pulling bristles out of our yard brush for the whiskers, but sadly neither the whiskers nor my mother's embroidered black snout and green eyes are visible on this old photo.

Country House at War - Part 2

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Walter Horace Samuel, 2nd Viscount Bearsted, owned the merchant bank, M. Samuel & Company and was Chairman of Shell Oil. He was a generous philanthropist, and a prominent art collector. His home, Upton House, housed an art collection to rival many national collections.

As mentioned in Part 1 he and his wife moved out of their home, Upton House, at the outbreak of war, and the staff working for his merchant bank moved in. To mark the 70th anniversary of the ending of WWll, the National Trust have recreated the atmosphere in the house that existed when the bank staff lived and worked there.

The 'Typing Pool' was housed in the Long Gallery

where nostalgic music and songs from the war years added to the atmosphere

May be this was Joe's Air Raid Warden outfit!

These bronze medallions, which are the size of dinner plates, were created by Austrian born Jewish sculptor Professor Arthur Immanuel Loewental. He fled to England in 1934 from Berlin, and Lord Bearsted was one of those who helped him to establish himself and obtain British nationality in 1941

On the home front knitting socks for the 'boys' began in ernest

Bedroom used by the male bank staff

Female bank staff bedroom

Lord Bearsted served in the WWl with the West Kent Yeomanry. He was decorated with the Military Cross, Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal showing oak leaf spray on the ribbon meaning he was mentioned in despatches. In WWll he had a secret role using the code named K; he never divulged his mission.

As war progressed Lord Bearsted became increasingly concerned for the safety of his valuable painting collection; the building of an RAF station at nearby Shenington was a great worry to him. He wrote a letter to Kenneth Clark, the then Director of the National Gallery, asking if his paintings could be placed alongside the national collection in a secret disused slate quarry. In the light of his service to the gallery and the importance of his collection the request was accepted. The location in Wales was top secret, but his paintings remained safe for the duration of the war in a chamber alongside paintings belonging to the King.

Off into the secret location they go

to be kept safe until the end of the war

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Three paintings from Lord Bearsted's collection

El Greco - 'El espollo' - the Disrobing of Christ  - showing the drama of the poignant moment when Christ stands on Cavalry whilst his cross is being prepared for his Crucifixion; his scarlet robe is about to be ripped off. In the bottom lefthand corner stand the three Marys

This is a smaller version of the same painting seen in Toledo Cathedral, Spain, where it hangs in the Sacristy above a marble altar

Follower of Fra Filippo Lippi - Three Acts of Charity

On the Day of Judgement, people would be judged according to the acts of charity they had carried out in their lifetime. In the first scene on the left, Christ, as the unknown stranger, is handed drink; in the second he is handed food; and in the third he is offered shelter

Puccio di Simone also known as Master of the Fabriano Altarpiece - The Last Supper

Christ is sitting at the left hand end of the table and St. John rests his head on his lap. He has just spoken the words 'But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table'. Judas (shown without a halo) raises his hands in protest.

To finish this is Lady Bearsted's glamorous red and silver Art Deco bathroom 

The bathroom walls are covered in a fine layer of aluminium leaf

A French Renaissance-style château

The front

The rear

overlooking the extraordinary flowered parterre pioneered by the owners

Every season the flower planting scheme is completely different using influences from tapestries, luxurious fabrics and carpets within the house.  This summers planting was inspired by a C17th Italian hanging of embroidered velvet on a cloth of gold 

You could be forgiven for imagining that we popped across the Channel to France for a few days, but this house lies within the heart of Buckinghamshire a little over an hours drive from where we live

This is Waddesden, built in the 1870s by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild to house his superb collections of art, furniture, and precious objects. It is where he entertained both the fashionable and influential at that time

I have an aversion to ivy growing up house walls,

but what is not to admire here where the ivy has been trained to both enhance and embrace the golden stonework and looks simply stunning

Two-dimensional and three-dimensional garden features using succulents and various coloured small leafed bedding plants were also pioneered by the Rothchild family

Although Waddesden was bequeathed to the National Trust in 1957 by his cousin, the current Baron retains an apartment and is a major benefactor. He is actively involved in major restoration works at the house, and  his great interest in the arts, style, and design are evident everywhere. He owns Château Lafite Rothschild situated in the wine producing village of Pauillac in the Médoc region of Bordeaux. Across all vintages Lafite Rothschild is one of the most expensive wines to buy. It is available to purchase in the shop at Waddesden, along with some interesting antique pieces, and a range of goods designed by students from the Royal College of Art which were inspired by the collections at Waddesden

representing a giant candlestick symbolising the family's connection to the world of wine and a reminder of Waddesdon's tradition of hospitality. The bottles are set on a steel armature and lit from within by fibre-optic strands as daylight falls

en masse planting not a speck of soil to be seen

The Aviary is an eye-catching feature and home to rare and endangered birds, many with Rothschild associations

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A Rothchild's Myna bird from Bali

Sumptuous decor in the dining room where lavish diner parties were held

The Red Drawing Room was the main reception room for guests arriving at Waddesden

After dinner at Baron Ferdinand's house parties, the ladies would withdraw to this the Grey Drawing Room whilst the men enjoyed port in the Dining Room before re-joining them for conversation, cards and music

There are two towers housing spiral stairways - one for going up and one for coming down

An enormous neo-classical polished malachite urn presented to Baron Lionel de Rothschild in 1873 by Emperor Alexander ll of Russia

This magnificent neo-classical silver service comprising 120 pieces is a supreme example of the goldsmith's art. It was commissioned by George lll in 1770 and is one of only a handful of royal silver services to survive worldwide

The Waddesden collection continues to grow and a fairly recent commission is this contemporary chandelier made from broken china and bent cutlery. It is the central feature in a deep blue room,  conceived by German lighting designer, Ingo Maurer. It is called Porca Miseria which roughly translates as 'Oh my Goodness' in Italian

Most of the house can be visited, but two thirds into our viewing we abandoned the tour as we both began suffering from image overload

We journeyed onwards to a C16 Coaching Inn where we stayed on an 'Amazon Deal' which I have mentioned previously as being fantastic value