Arthur Pan
Encyclopedia
Professor Arthur Pan was a Hungarian artist and portrait painter, whose subjects included Winston Churchill
.
and studied at the Budapest
Academy of Art and in Paris
at the Académie Julian
. He came to England as a refugee from the Nazis.
He painted in England
1920 - 1960 as a portraitist working primarily in oil. He painted portraits of historical personages, including Sir Winston Churchill
. On 25 December 1943, The Illustrated London News carried a double page spread of "Mr Churchill—A Characteristic Portrait of the Prime Minister from a Painting By Professor Arthur Pan".
A replica of a large Churchill portrait by Pan was bought for the White House
. Pan also painted a "striking" portrait of South African Field Marshal Jan Smuts
, and Lord Catto,
On 7 April 1945, The Illustrated London News carried a full front page of a specially commissioned painting by Pan of Lieut. General Sir Miles Dempsey
DSO MC, The Commander of the British Second Army and the first British Army commander to cross the River Rhine.
In its issue of 4 March 1959, The Motor magazine referred to Pan's portrait of the late Sir George Beharrell and mistakenly also described the artist as dead, for which it apologised in a subsequent issue.
Two portraits were commissioned by the artist's physician, Dr. Ernst Friedrich Blumberg. The paintings were of the physician's wife Marion Harding in 1962, which she has in her collection, and an earlier work of his father Dr. Jacob Moritz Blumberg
, a surgeon
and gynaecologist; the whereabouts of the latter is unknown.
They were painted at the residence of the artist in Chorley Wood, Hertfordshire
, England.
During the 1950s Pan lived for two years at the Bagdhad Palace of King Faisal II of Iraq
where he worked on a commission for the Iraqi Royal Family. The portraits were all destroyed in the coup d'état of July, 1958.
A head and shoulders portrait of Churchill by Pan was auctioned at Christie's Fine Art Auction House in 1981. Another portrait of Churchill by Pan, completed in 1943 during World War II
, hangs in the American Embassy in London, England.
Pan made two copies of paintings by Willem van de Velde the Younger
, The Shore at Sheveningen and Dutch Vessels Close Inshore at Low Tide, 13.5 x 18.5", both of which he signed. They came up for auction in the UK in 2001.
Pan had a son who became an architect.
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
.
Life and work
Arthur Pan was born in HungaryHungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
and studied at the Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
Academy of Art and in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
at the Académie Julian
Académie Julian
The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. The Académie Julian not only prepared students to the exams at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, but offered...
. He came to England as a refugee from the Nazis.
He painted in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
1920 - 1960 as a portraitist working primarily in oil. He painted portraits of historical personages, including Sir Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
. On 25 December 1943, The Illustrated London News carried a double page spread of "Mr Churchill—A Characteristic Portrait of the Prime Minister from a Painting By Professor Arthur Pan".
A replica of a large Churchill portrait by Pan was bought for the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. Pan also painted a "striking" portrait of South African Field Marshal Jan Smuts
Jan Smuts
Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948...
, and Lord Catto,
 |
 |
Jan Smuts Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948... |
Miles Dempsey General Sir Miles Christopher Dempsey, GBE, KCB, DSO, MC was commander of the British Second Army during the D-Day landings in the Second World War... |
| Both men were amongst the portrait subjects painted by Arthur Pan. | |
On 7 April 1945, The Illustrated London News carried a full front page of a specially commissioned painting by Pan of Lieut. General Sir Miles Dempsey
Miles Dempsey
General Sir Miles Christopher Dempsey, GBE, KCB, DSO, MC was commander of the British Second Army during the D-Day landings in the Second World War...
DSO MC, The Commander of the British Second Army and the first British Army commander to cross the River Rhine.
In its issue of 4 March 1959, The Motor magazine referred to Pan's portrait of the late Sir George Beharrell and mistakenly also described the artist as dead, for which it apologised in a subsequent issue.
Two portraits were commissioned by the artist's physician, Dr. Ernst Friedrich Blumberg. The paintings were of the physician's wife Marion Harding in 1962, which she has in her collection, and an earlier work of his father Dr. Jacob Moritz Blumberg
Jacob Moritz Blumberg
Jacob Moritz Blumberg was a German Jewish surgeon and gynaecologist and inventor and namesake of the Blumberg sign.-Biography:...
, a surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
and gynaecologist; the whereabouts of the latter is unknown.
They were painted at the residence of the artist in Chorley Wood, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, England.
During the 1950s Pan lived for two years at the Bagdhad Palace of King Faisal II of Iraq
Faisal II of Iraq
Faisal II was the last King of Iraq. He reigned from 4 April 1939 until July 1958, when he was killed during the "14 July Revolution" together with several members of his family...
where he worked on a commission for the Iraqi Royal Family. The portraits were all destroyed in the coup d'état of July, 1958.
A head and shoulders portrait of Churchill by Pan was auctioned at Christie's Fine Art Auction House in 1981. Another portrait of Churchill by Pan, completed in 1943 during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, hangs in the American Embassy in London, England.
Pan made two copies of paintings by Willem van de Velde the Younger
Willem van de Velde the Younger
Willem van de Velde the Younger was a Dutch marine painter.-Biography:Willem van de Velde was baptised on 18 December 1633 in Leiden, Holland, Dutch Republic....
, The Shore at Sheveningen and Dutch Vessels Close Inshore at Low Tide, 13.5 x 18.5", both of which he signed. They came up for auction in the UK in 2001.
Pan had a son who became an architect.