Born: 1915 Sydney, Australia
Died: 1969 England
Year of Migration to the UK: 1926
Other name/s: Lionel Maurice de Sausmarez, Maurice de Sausmarez ARA
Biography
Artist, writer, and educator, Maurice de Sausmarez was born on 20 October 1915 in Sydney, Australia. Shortly after his birth, the family relocated to Grenada in the West Indies. Following the death of his father in 1918, de Sausmarez moved to England with his mother in 1923. His education began locally before continuing at St Michael’s Highgate and Willesden schools. Awarded a scholarship to Christ’s Hospital in 1926, he excelled in music and art, but ultimately chose the latter, enrolling at the Royal College of Art in London in 1936 to study painting and design. During the Second World War, his studies were interrupted as he worked as a volunteer firefighter in Sheffield, while teaching at Edward VII School, until health issues exempted him from military service.
During the war de Saumarez showed often with the left-wing artists International Association (AIA), supporting the anti-fascist cause. His career began to flourish in the immediate postwar period and his first solo exhibition was held at the Paul Alexander Gallery in Kensington in 1949, where he presented 35 works. The exhibition included landscapes, portraits, and still-life studies, many of which had been shown previously in Yorkshire exhibitions and at the Royal Academy of Arts. In 1953, he participated in the Tate Gallery exhibition, Figures in their Setting. His productivity during this period was closely linked to his appointment at Leeds College of Art, where he had recently begun teaching. De Sausmarez’s art was characterised by a classical approach to composition and a profound interest in the interplay of light and space. His later works also often depicted landscapes, influenced by travels to France, Italy, and other regions. Paintings such as Valle de Ombrone, Tuscany exemplify his distinctive use of geometry and colour to capture the essence of natural forms. A versatile artist, he also engaged in freelance design, portraiture, and book illustration. His works were exhibited widely, including at the Royal Academy, Leicester Galleries, and the New English Art Club, of which he became a member in 1950. De Sausmarez also made a unique contribution to theatre as a designer. His innovative work on a 1951 production of King Lear at the University of Leeds, part of the city's Festival of Britain celebrations, stood out for its abstract stage structures. Dispensing with conventional scenery, his designs emphasised the play's fundamental conflicts and tensions. These abstract elements, integrated into a multiple-stage setup, enhanced the production's dramatic impact, showcasing de Sausmarez’s ability to translate his artistic vision into other mediums.
In addition to his art practice, de Sausmarez was a pivotal figure in art education. He began teaching part-time during the 1940s at London institutions, such as Goldsmiths' College and Camberwell School of Art. From 1947, he headed the School of Drawing and Painting at Leeds College of Art, and in 1950 he established the Department of Fine Art at the University of Leeds, serving as its first head until 1959. His innovative approach to art education made Leeds a model for fine art departments in newer universities. In 1962, de Sausmarez became Principal of the Byam Shaw School of Drawing and Painting in London. Among his notable students was Bridget Riley, who subsequently became one of the leading figures in Op Art in Britain. Riley's work reflects principles of visual structure and abstraction that were central to de Sausmarez's teaching, underscoring his lasting influence on her development as an artist. His influence extended beyond teaching, as evidenced by his contributions to the Basic Design movement. His book, Basic Design: The Dynamics of Visual Form (1964), was a groundbreaking text that revolutionised art education internationally and remains a significant resource in the field. De Sausmarez’s commitment to education was matched by his leadership within artistic circles. He served as Chairman of the AIA from 1946 to 1948 and was a member of the London Group and the Society for Education through Art. He was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy of Arts (ARA) in 1964.
Throughout his life, de Sausmarez maintained a deep connection to his artistic practice. His style evolved from representational works to more abstract explorations of form and colour. His later landscapes, often created in the studio from studies and sketches, demonstrated his mastery of composition and light. His admiration for artists such as Jacques Villon, Cézanne, and Poussin informed his artistic philosophy. De Sausmarez married his second wife, Jane Elisabeth Boswell, in 1963, and they divided their time between London and a house in the Vaucluse, France, where he found inspiration for many of his vibrant, geometrically driven landscapes. Maurice de Sausmarez died in London, England on 27 October 1969. A memorial exhibition at the Royal Academy in 1970 celebrated his contributions to the art world. His work is represented in the UK public domain in the collections of the Ferens Art Gallery, Hull and Leeds Museums and Galleries, among others, and his archive is available online at the University of Leeds. In 2015, the centenary of his birth, and with the assistance of his widow, the Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery, University of Leeds, presented a retrospective, in conjunction with publication of his selected art writings, co-authored by eminent art critic, Richard Cork.
Related books
- Maurice De Sausmarez, Hilary Diaper and Jane De Sausmarez, On Artists and Their Making: Selected Writings of Maurice de Sausmarez (London: Unicorn Press, 2015)
- Hilary Diaper, Maurice de Sausmarez 1915-1969 (Leeds: The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, 2015)
- Alan Windsor, ‘Sausmarez, Lionel Maurice de’, in H. C. G. Matthew and Brian Howard Harrison eds., Oxford National Dictionary of Biography (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004)
- Homage to Maurice de Sausmarez: an Exhibition of Works (London: Upper Grosvenor Galleries, 1971)
- Maurice de Sausmarez, Bridget Riley (London: Studio Vista, 1970)
- ‘Mr M. De Sausmarez’, The Times, 30 October 1969, p. 12
- Maurice De Sausmarez, Maurice de Sausmarez ARA on Poussin's Orpheus and Eurydice (London: Cassel, 1969)
- Dannie Abse, 'Homage to Rosenberg', Jewish Chronicle, 7 August 1959, p. 20
- 'At Leeds 'King Lear'', The Stage, 7 June 1951, p. 10
- ‘Leeds Painter's Success’, Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer, 6 October 1949, p. 2
Public collections
Related organisations
- Artists’ International Association (Chairman)
- Byam Shaw School of Drawing and Painting (Principal)
- London Group (member)
- New English Art Club (member)
- Royal Academy of Arts (Associate)
- Royal College of Art (student)
- Society for Education through Art (President)
- University of Leeds (Head of the Department of Fine Art)
Related web links
- Contemporary Art Society
- Leeds University archives blog
- Liss Llewellyn
- Maurice de Sausmarez Archive Collection Guide, University of Leeds
- Royal Academy archives
- Royal Academy entry
- State of The Art review of exhibition at Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery
Selected exhibitions
- Crossing Borders, Ferens Art Gallery, Hull (2018–19)
- Maurice de Sausmarez 1915–1969, The Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery, University of Leeds (2015-16)
- Homage to Maurice de Sausmarez, Upper Grosvenor Galleries, London (1971)
- The Nude, group exhibition, New Grafton Gallery, London (1969)
- Contemporary British Landscape Painters, group exhibition, Upper Grosvenor Galleries, London (1967)
- The Seasons, group exhibition, Tate Gallery, London (1956)
- Maurice de Sausmarez, Terry Frost, and Hubert Dalwood, group exhibition, University of Leeds (1956)
- Self Portraits of Contemporary Painters, group exhibition, Ferens Art Gallery, Kingston-Upon-Hull (1955)
- Figures in their Setting, group exhibition, Tate Gallery, London (1953)
- Yorkshire Artists' Exhibition, group exhibition, Leeds City Art Gallery (1953)
- Paintings by Maurice de Sausmarez, The Haworth Gallery, Wakefield, Yorkshire (1951)
- Paintings by Maurice de Sausmarez, Paul Alexander Gallery, London (1949)
- Royal Academy Summer Exhibition (1947–8, 1950–5, 1957, 1959, 1962–9, and 1970)
- AIA: Painters Today, group exhibition, 56 Pall Mall, London (1946)
- Scheme for Recording the Changing Face of Britain, group exhibition, National Gallery, London (1942)
- AIA: Unity for Artists of Peace, Democracy, and Cultural Development, group exhibition, Whitechapel Gallery, London (1939)
- Students' Group Exhibition, Royal College of Art, London (1938)
- AIA: Artists against Fascism and War, group exhibition, 28 Soho Square, London (1937)
- De Olympiade Onder Dictatuur, group exhibition, Amsterdam (1936)
- Exhibition of 15 Students' Sketch Clubs, group exhibition, Whitechapel Art Gallery, London (1936)
- Artists International Association: Artists against Fascism & War, group exhibition, 28 Soho Square, London (1935)
