Arthur Spencer Roberts
Encyclopedia
Arthur Spencer Roberts was a British
painter interested mainly in animal and wildlife subjects, but who also produced portraits and paintings of military scenes. His largest work was a mural
for the Manor House at Port Lympne Zoo
.
in Glasgow (1923-27). The family moved to Hastings
on medical advice that a southern climate would improve Arthur's tuberculosis
. Swimming was advised to help his condition, following the example of Johnny Weismuller who has also suffered from tuberculosis. Arthur became a profficint swimmer to the point of being selected for the 1939 Olympic Team for 100m freestyle, but the onset of war caused the event to be cancelled. He had a youthfull interest in wildlife, bird watching and became an expert beach fisherman.
He was educated at Hastings Grammar School
from 1931 to 1937. He then attended Hastings College of Art, run by Philip Cole and Percy Badham. Cole objected to the use of erasers, and Roberts retained the habit of never using one throughout his career. Badham was an able watercolourist, and this also influenced Roberts in his preference for using watercolours and gouache
. Roberts won a scholarship to attend the Royal College of Art
, but this was also prevented by the outbreak of war.
and Miles Magister
aircraft. He was part of the first group to be sent to the USA for fighter training under the Empire Air Training Plan
, training with Airacobras, Lockheed Lightnings
, Tomahawks and Kittyhawks
at Lakeland, Florida. In 1942 Roberts crashed a tomahawk, initially surviving uninjured, but receiving a severe head injury when he was dropped out of the wreck during rescue. He was sent to Canada where he received further training as a bomb aimer and navigator before becoming a navigation instructor with rank of flight lieutenant in the Royal Canadian Air force at Trenton
, Ontario
, when he was pronounced permanently unfit to fly.
In 1943 he was recalled to the army in England, and sent temporarily to Watford. He was chosen amongst other soldiers to take part in the film The Way Ahead
directed by Carol Reed. After the war, Reed offered Roberts more acting work, which he declined. He was posted to India, underwent jungle training at Deolali before serving temporarily at various places in India and Pakistan, with rank of Gunner. He requested transfer to Burma where he served as a sergeant in 1944 at the Arakan Front
, where he was employed to scout and make drawings of enemy positions. He received a bullet wound to his right hand, which became close to requiring amputation
.
After hostilities ceased and while the army stayed in India, he produced a number of murals in various buildings (hospitals and the palace of the Maharajah of Mysore). In 1946 he was demobilised having won six campaign medals. In later life he painted scenes of guns used in the Gulf War
, the Arakan campaign and scenes from the Battle of the Somme where both his and his wife's father had served.
. There he met his wife Mavis and was married in 1946 at St Mary Magdalen Church in Hastings
. From 1946-1948 he completed his Fine Arts degree, before attending Brighton Arts College in 1949 to obtain a teaching diploma. He began teaching at Maidstone Secondary Modern school for one year, before obtaining a post at Hastings Central School.
In 1955 he illustrated a book about Canada, 'Smoke over Sikanska by J.S. Gowland. This encouraged him to move to British Columbia
in Canada. He first took a post to teach art history at Vancouver university
, but then found work as a commercial artist for the Hudson's Bay Company
in Vancouver
where he prepared advertising illustrations of items ranging from Lingerie
to artworks.
In 1957 he was recalled to England by the British army because of the Suez Crisis
, but this was over before he returned to military life. He spent a year preparing work for an exhibition and completed paintings from sketches made in Canada. These paintings began to sell, but he took a teaching job at the Downs school, Bexhill. The couple initially lived in St Leonards-on-Sea
, but purchased a house on a cliff top at Fairlight
where they remained for five years.
In 1965 Roberts decided to sell the house, purchase a caravan, and move to the Isle of Arran
in Scotland
. Privations of life in the wilderness and a desire for company eventually led to another return to Sussex and the purchase of a house in Rye
, together with a return to part-time teaching. The availability for purchase of a dilapidated coastguard cottage allowed both a return to beachside living at Fairlight and an opportunity to pay off the mortgage, allowing Roberts to work full time as an artist. Interest in his works increased, with exhibitions in London and an increasing number of visitors to his home. Further exhibitions followed at the Armand Hammer
galleries in New York
.
After returning from one such visit, the couple discovered that their home had moved dramatically closer to the cliff edge following ongoing rock slides. They decided to move again, this time to a former boathouse once used to plan the construction of the Royal Military Canal
.
Exhibitions of his paintings in America were successful and were followed by others in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Japan.
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
painter interested mainly in animal and wildlife subjects, but who also produced portraits and paintings of military scenes. His largest work was a mural
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
for the Manor House at Port Lympne Zoo
Port Lympne Zoo
Port Lympne Wild Animal Park near the town of Hythe in Kent, England is set in and incorporates the historic mansion and landscaped gardens designed by architect Sir Herbert Baker for Sir Philip Sassoon during World War I....
.
Early life
Roberts' father, Arthur Meyrick Roberts, was an army officer serving in World War I and later Ireland, where he married and Spencer was born in Cork. He rose to bandmaster in the Kings own Yorkshire Light Infantry, but eventually left the army and became a trombone player for the Scottish OrchestraRoyal Scottish National Orchestra
The Royal Scottish National Orchestra is Scotland's national symphony orchestra. Based in Glasgow, the 89-member professional orchestra also regularly performs in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee, and abroad. Formed in 1891 as the Scottish Orchestra, the company has performed full-time since 1950,...
in Glasgow (1923-27). The family moved to Hastings
Hastings
Hastings is a town and borough in the county of East Sussex on the south coast of England. The town is located east of the county town of Lewes and south east of London, and has an estimated population of 86,900....
on medical advice that a southern climate would improve Arthur's tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
. Swimming was advised to help his condition, following the example of Johnny Weismuller who has also suffered from tuberculosis. Arthur became a profficint swimmer to the point of being selected for the 1939 Olympic Team for 100m freestyle, but the onset of war caused the event to be cancelled. He had a youthfull interest in wildlife, bird watching and became an expert beach fisherman.
He was educated at Hastings Grammar School
William Parker Sports College
The William Parker Sports College, formerly known as Hastings Grammar School, and later as William Parker School, is a secondary school in Hastings, East Sussex in the United Kingdom...
from 1931 to 1937. He then attended Hastings College of Art, run by Philip Cole and Percy Badham. Cole objected to the use of erasers, and Roberts retained the habit of never using one throughout his career. Badham was an able watercolourist, and this also influenced Roberts in his preference for using watercolours and gouache
Gouache
Gouache[p], also spelled guache, the name of which derives from the Italian guazzo, water paint, splash or bodycolor is a type of paint consisting of pigment suspended in water. A binding agent, usually gum arabic, is also present, just as in watercolor...
. Roberts won a scholarship to attend the Royal College of Art
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art is an art school located in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s only wholly postgraduate university of art and design, offering the degrees of Master of Arts , Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy...
, but this was also prevented by the outbreak of war.
Military career
Roberts joined the 114th Field Regiment of the Territorial Army in 1938, on the advice of his father that war was inevitable, against the wishes of his mother. In 1939, the unit trained with guns taken from Hastings museum, but shortly received modern equipment. Roberts volunteered to become an airforce pilot and was trained initially at Scarborough Initial Training Wing, then Perth Elementary Flying School, using Tiger MothTiger moth
Tiger moths are moths of the family Arctiidae.Tiger moth may also refer to:*de Havilland Tiger Moth, an aircraft; an aerobatic and trainer tailwheel biplane*de Havilland DH.71 Tiger Moth, an earlier monoplane produced by de Havilland...
and Miles Magister
Miles Magister
-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Amos, Peter. Miles Aircraft = The early years. Tonbridge: Air-Britain, 2009. ISBN 978 0 85130 410 6...
aircraft. He was part of the first group to be sent to the USA for fighter training under the Empire Air Training Plan
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan , known in some countries as the Empire Air Training Scheme , was a massive, joint military aircrew training program created by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, during the Second World War...
, training with Airacobras, Lockheed Lightnings
P-38 Lightning
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament...
, Tomahawks and Kittyhawks
Curtiss P-40
The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk was an American single-engine, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry into production and operational...
at Lakeland, Florida. In 1942 Roberts crashed a tomahawk, initially surviving uninjured, but receiving a severe head injury when he was dropped out of the wreck during rescue. He was sent to Canada where he received further training as a bomb aimer and navigator before becoming a navigation instructor with rank of flight lieutenant in the Royal Canadian Air force at Trenton
CFB Trenton
Canadian Forces Base Trenton , is a Canadian Forces base located northeast of Trenton, Ontario. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force and is the hub for air transport operations in Canada and abroad...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, when he was pronounced permanently unfit to fly.
In 1943 he was recalled to the army in England, and sent temporarily to Watford. He was chosen amongst other soldiers to take part in the film The Way Ahead
The Way Ahead
The Way Ahead is a British Second World War drama released in 1944. It stars David Niven and Stanley Holloway and follows a group of civilians who are conscripted into the British Army to fight in North Africa. In the U.S., an edited version was released as The Immortal Battalion.The film was...
directed by Carol Reed. After the war, Reed offered Roberts more acting work, which he declined. He was posted to India, underwent jungle training at Deolali before serving temporarily at various places in India and Pakistan, with rank of Gunner. He requested transfer to Burma where he served as a sergeant in 1944 at the Arakan Front
Burma Campaign
The Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II was fought primarily between British Commonwealth, Chinese and United States forces against the forces of the Empire of Japan, Thailand, and the Indian National Army. British Commonwealth land forces were drawn primarily from...
, where he was employed to scout and make drawings of enemy positions. He received a bullet wound to his right hand, which became close to requiring amputation
Amputation
Amputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma, prolonged constriction, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for...
.
After hostilities ceased and while the army stayed in India, he produced a number of murals in various buildings (hospitals and the palace of the Maharajah of Mysore). In 1946 he was demobilised having won six campaign medals. In later life he painted scenes of guns used in the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, the Arakan campaign and scenes from the Battle of the Somme where both his and his wife's father had served.
Later life
In 1946, he was demobbed and returned to SussexSussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
. There he met his wife Mavis and was married in 1946 at St Mary Magdalen Church in Hastings
Hastings
Hastings is a town and borough in the county of East Sussex on the south coast of England. The town is located east of the county town of Lewes and south east of London, and has an estimated population of 86,900....
. From 1946-1948 he completed his Fine Arts degree, before attending Brighton Arts College in 1949 to obtain a teaching diploma. He began teaching at Maidstone Secondary Modern school for one year, before obtaining a post at Hastings Central School.
In 1955 he illustrated a book about Canada, 'Smoke over Sikanska by J.S. Gowland. This encouraged him to move to British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
in Canada. He first took a post to teach art history at Vancouver university
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
, but then found work as a commercial artist for the Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
where he prepared advertising illustrations of items ranging from Lingerie
Lingerie
Lingerie are fashionable and possibly alluring undergarments.Lingerie usually incorporates one or more flexible, stretchy materials like Lycra, nylon , polyester, satin, lace, silk and sheer fabric which are not typically used in more functional, basic cotton undergarments.The term in the French...
to artworks.
In 1957 he was recalled to England by the British army because of the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
, but this was over before he returned to military life. He spent a year preparing work for an exhibition and completed paintings from sketches made in Canada. These paintings began to sell, but he took a teaching job at the Downs school, Bexhill. The couple initially lived in St Leonards-on-Sea
St Leonards-on-Sea
St Leonards-on-Sea is part of Hastings, East Sussex, England, lying immediately to the west of the centre. The original part of the settlement was laid out in the early 19th century as a new town: a place of elegant houses designed for the well-off; it also included a central public garden, a...
, but purchased a house on a cliff top at Fairlight
Fairlight, East Sussex
Fairlight is a village in East Sussex, England within Rother district, three miles to the east of Hastings. Fairlight is also the name of the civil parish forming part of the Rother district which includes the villages of Fairlight and Fairlight Cove.The village of Fairlight lies on a minor road...
where they remained for five years.
In 1965 Roberts decided to sell the house, purchase a caravan, and move to the Isle of Arran
Isle of Arran
Arran or the Isle of Arran is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and with an area of is the seventh largest Scottish island. It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire and the 2001 census had a resident population of 5,058...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. Privations of life in the wilderness and a desire for company eventually led to another return to Sussex and the purchase of a house in Rye
Rye
Rye is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley and wheat. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder...
, together with a return to part-time teaching. The availability for purchase of a dilapidated coastguard cottage allowed both a return to beachside living at Fairlight and an opportunity to pay off the mortgage, allowing Roberts to work full time as an artist. Interest in his works increased, with exhibitions in London and an increasing number of visitors to his home. Further exhibitions followed at the Armand Hammer
Armand Hammer
Armand Hammer was an American business tycoon most closely associated with Occidental Petroleum, a company he ran for decades, though he was known as well as for his art collection, his philanthropy, and for his close ties to the Soviet Union.Thanks to business interests around the world and his...
galleries in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
After returning from one such visit, the couple discovered that their home had moved dramatically closer to the cliff edge following ongoing rock slides. They decided to move again, this time to a former boathouse once used to plan the construction of the Royal Military Canal
Royal Military Canal
The Royal Military Canal is a canal running for 28 miles between Seabrook near Folkestone and Cliff End near Hastings, following the old cliff line bordering Romney Marsh.-Construction:...
.
Exhibitions of his paintings in America were successful and were followed by others in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Japan.