Wednesday 29 May 2013

Arthur Romney Green, Sir Robert Hunter & Godfrey Blount

Following on from my post Arthur Romney Green and the Peasant Arts People, I have gone back to the source of Susan Elkin's description (Life to the Lees, Cromwell Press, 1998) of Arthur Romney Green's move to Haslemere to see Green's explanation.  Green calls himself 'Artifer' in his autobiography.

In his unpublished memoirs Work and Play (held at the National Art Library, Victoria and Albert Museum), Green states "My father's greatest friend at London University was Robert Hunter, afterwards Sir Robert and Solicitor General to the Post Office; and his second wife was another of my Father's beautiful friends.  They had three daughters rather younger than ourselves, their charming home at Haslemere which, with those of our grandparents at Alton and at Saffron Walden, we regarded as amongst the most ideal of holiday resorts.  O, the holiday delights of those three homes - the intelligent friendliness of our hosts, the love of gardens, the pony-riding and the picnics and the good eating." (Chapter 2, page 8).

Work and Play,
autobiography of Arthur Romney Green,
National Art Library, Victoria & Albert Museum


As a footnote to page 8 Green adds "It was mainly owing to my introduction to Haslemere by the Hunters that I set up there my first real workshop.  On leaving Haslemere I saw little of them for many years; but not it pleases my to know, as I revise this chapter, that amongst my own are the daughters of my father's greatest friends."

Later Green writes "We chose Haslemere because hand-weaving and other small industries were already there, inspired or attracted by the genius of Godfrey Blount.  Also because my Father's old friends Sir Robert and Lady Hunter were still there, and were very able and willing to give us introductions to many of the rather cultured and wealthy people who abound in that beautiful neighbourhood."

Work and Play,
autobiography of Arthur Romney Green,
National Art Library, Victoria & Albert Museum


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