DLA018-0022  Transcription 

DRIFTWOOD SPARS HOTEL

ST. AGNES-BY-THE-SEA

CORNWALL

June 13th 1930

My dear Philip

I was very glad to get your letter this morning and to have news of you – very many thanks for the notes you enclosed: it is very good of you to pass them on to me.

Your R.B.A. news is excellent; I did not expect there would be any serious opposition to you but I certainly thought some of the revolutionaries would vote against you merely for the sake of being perverse. That only one did vote against you is a very good proof of the view that the society takes of you – artists are a silly lot but after the evidence they have had already of your value as President even the

[Page 2]

silliest of them might be expected to show some sense. I shall be curious to hear how the sales in the present exhibition compare with those under Sickert’s management;^[1] I expect the difference will be rather striking. I am glad to hear that Hely Smith sold his sea-piece;^[2] his work is pleasant and sound and he is himself quite an agreeable person.

You have, as you say, entered on another year of responsibility but you are doing a really good work and you are showing the R.B.A. members how the society should be run. When they have learned a bit more about their responsibilities and duties as members I think things will run much more steadily and you will not have so much to do. You were bound to have a good deal of trouble

[Page 3]

at first as the society had got into a muddle through the slack management of previous presidents and you have had to clean things up and put everything into working order again. I think it is rather wonderful that you have been able to do so much in so short a time.

You seem to be as busy as ever with your own work and you have evidently some interesting sitters just now. I shall look forward to seeing the pictures when we come back – I do not think that will be till the end of this month, probably July 1st to 2nd. Do try to find time to finish that picture of Lucy, Paul and Pat, playing [8280]; I do want you to send it to the R.B.A. in the autumn.^[3]

We are having quite a good time here and the weather so far has behaved reasonably well. I have done some work and have found a good

[Page 4]

many subjects which seem promising so I hope to get a good batch of things done. The coast here is fine and the country inland is rather interesting – so far I have only done coast subjects.

I hope you are not overworking and are not being tempted by the long days to fit in too many sitters and I hope you and Lucy are well –

Please thank her, for me, for her letter, and please give my congratulations to Henry on arriving at such a respectable age.

Our love to you all | Always yours

A.L.B.

Editorial Note:

Alfred Lys Baldry (1858-1939), British artist and art critic who authored several articles on de László and who was a close family friend; for biographical notes, see [3562].

SMDL

13/04/2018