DLA018-0015  Transcription 

WOLMER WOOD,

MARLOW COMMON,

MARLOW,

BUCKS.

Oct. 15th 1930.

My dear Philip

I was very glad to get your letter and to have good news of you. It seems that you are hard at work again but I hope that your delightful sitters are not tempting you to overwork – however, the shortening of the days does prevent you from putting in too many hours on your feet and tiring yourself too much. I am very anxious to hear all about your adventures during the weeks you have been away – it seems quite a long time – so I shall be delighted to obey your command to turn up at no. 3 next week. I must make it Tuesday, as I have to be back here Wednesday evening, and I am writing to Lucy to ask if my appearance on Tuesday will

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fit in all right with her domestic arrangements. I expect you will have a good deal to tell me about what you have been seeing and doing and, of course, I want to see any sketches you bring back. I am fairly busy again with the various exhibitions, as all the galleries are opening again now; I did a batch today but I saw nothing of any importance. The London Group has a show at the New Burlington Galleries; it is very silly and very feeble, full of childish stuff – there is really nothing in it that has any right to exist.^[1] I get very tired of seeing so much rubbish!

I am glad to hear that the R.B.A. work is liked in America; the society ought to be very grateful to you for giving it such a chance of getting known over there. I do think, though, that the members are really beginning to understand what it means to have someone in the Post of President who is

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anxious and ready to help them. It is a long time since they had anyone with any energy or enthusiasm to look after their affairs.

I have finished off the article on Albert Moore I am writing for the Journal of the Royal Water Colour Society Art Club^[2] and now I am starting work on the pages I have to read at the Leighton centenary celebration.^[3] this affair does not come off till Dec. 5th but I want to get the stuff written well ahead so as to have time to think it out properly. A day or two ago I had an invitation from the Royal Society of Artists at Birmingham to go down there and deliver a lecture to the society and its friends and supporters. I do not want to do it until after the Leighton affair is over but if a date can be arranged after Dec. 5th it will be rather pleasant to do the lecture because the Birmingham artists are very strong

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for sanity in art and very opposed to the modern cranks and I should have, I think, a sympathetic audience. But this means that I shall be pretty busy for the next month or two – still, it will be interesting work.

We are having at the moment a spell of very pleasant weather, quite warm and fairly sunny. I hope it will last on for a bit as I do not want the cold to start yet awhile; we deserve a fine autumn after the very mixed summer.

So, au revoir; I hope to see you on Tuesday.

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

07/04/2018