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Noted art historian
Edward Lucie-Smith has described Beryl Cook as a worthy
successor to William Hogarth and "the nicest
thing to happen to British painting in years."
With wit and imagination, Cook transforms her painting
and original lithographs into wry commentaries on
the human condition. Her subjects have a universal
life-affirming appeal that transcends the comic situations
of her imaginary people. According to the artist,
the theme of her work is; "enjoy yourself , it's
later than you think! Live for today, for tomorrow,
who knows?"
Cook was born in Surrey,
England in 1926. At age 17, she and her family
moved to London, where she performed in a touring
production of "The Gypsy Princess."
In 1947, she married her childhood sweetheart John
Cook, and several years later, they moved to Southern
Rhodesia. Here, Cook taught herself to paint,
and created many paintings of native women and local
market scenes.
After several years
in Africa, the family returned to England. In
the late 1960's they settled in Plymouth Hoe where
Beryl Cook ran a holiday boarding house during the
summer months. Her guests frequently became
the unknown subjects of her paintings, providing a
panorama of "human types."
The paintings were
solely exhibited on the walls of her home, until 1975,
when she allowed a friend who was an antique dealer
to sell a few paintings in his shop. The Plymouth
Art Centre hosted her first one-person show, which
was the impetus for her future success. Her
works have been exhibited at Whitechapel Gallery and
Portal Gallery, London, and Alexander Gallery, Bristol.
In the Alpine Fine
Art Collection, 1982, Eric Lister wrote, "Cook's
meticulous observation of amusing, often amorous situations
keeps appearing in her new work, her colours and forms
are becoming bolder. The paintings...are blossoming
into unique social commentaires while remaining always
full of fun."
Cook's art has been
published in numerous besy-selling books, including
The Works, Private View and One-Man Show,
which detailed her sold-out exhibition at Portal Gallery
in 1981. In 1980, the artist created imaginative
illustrations for the children's book Seven Years
and a Day by Colette O'Hare. In 1985, Alfred
A. Knopf published Beryl Cook's New York,
chronicling the artist's impression of New York City.
In 1986 the artist based several lithographs on the
paintings created for this book. Currently,
Cook still lives in Plymouth Hoe and continues her
weekly visit to her locate pub. By critics and
fans alike, she is herald as one of England's most
famous living artist.
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