Bevis Hillier
Encyclopedia
Bevis Hillier is an English art historian, author and journalist. He has written on Art Deco
, and also a biography
of Sir John Betjeman
.
, his father was Jack Hillier, an authority and author on Japanese art
. His mother was Mary Louise Hillier, an author on wax dolls and automata
. Hillier was educated at Reigate Grammar School
and Magdalen College, Oxford
where he won the Gladstone Memorial Prize for History. He was employed as a journalist
on The Times
in 1963.
In 1968 his book Art Deco of the 20s and 30s was published by Studio Vista. This was the first major work on a hitherto neglected period of art, which had been previously been referred to by various names. His use of the term Art Deco
became definitive. A year later, also by Studio Vista, he published a book concentrating on the art of caricature from the 13th century to the then present day. The book was simply entitled Cartoons and Caricatures. In 1971 he curated a major Art Deco show at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts
.
His major work, the authorised biography of Sir John Betjeman
, was published by John Murray
in three parts, appearing in 1988, 2002 and 2004. The work had taken him 25 years to research and write. A one-volume abridgement was published in 2006 for Betjeman's centenary. Hillier has also written books on ceramics, posters, cartoons and caricatures. He is a lead reviewer for The Spectator
.
In 1983, his work The Style of the Century was published, and it has since been reprinted. The book is a review of the various styles of the 20th Century, from Art Nouveau
through psychedelia, pop art
and punk.
, but was discovered to contain a hoax letter, purportedly by Betjeman, but actually containing an insulting acrostic to Wilson. The letter was sent to Wilson by "Eve de Harben", an anagram of "Ever been had?", and the first letters of each sentence, beginning with the second, spelt out the message "AN Wilson is a shit". Hillier was an immediate suspect: the Sunday Times
article revealing the hoax was accompanied by a prominent picture of Hillier, and noted that an envelope containing a letter supposedly from de Harben to the newspaper had been bought in Winchester
, his home town.
Hillier initially denied responsibility, but soon admitted that he had written the letter. He explained that he had been angered by Wilson's negative review of the second volume of his biography of Betjeman, and by pre-publication publicity for Wilson's own biography.
(Frances Lincoln, 2008) ISBN 9780711229334.
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
, and also a biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
of Sir John Betjeman
John Betjeman
Sir John Betjeman, CBE was an English poet, writer and broadcaster who described himself in Who's Who as a "poet and hack".He was a founding member of the Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture...
.
Life and work
Hillier was born in Redhill, SurreyRedhill, Surrey
Redhill is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead, Surrey, England and is part of the London commuter belt. Redhill and the adjacent town of Reigate form a single urban area.-History:...
, his father was Jack Hillier, an authority and author on Japanese art
Japanese art
Japanese art covers a wide range of art styles and media, including ancient pottery, sculpture in wood and bronze, ink painting on silk and paper and more recently manga, cartoon, along with a myriad of other types of works of art...
. His mother was Mary Louise Hillier, an author on wax dolls and automata
Automata
Automata is the plural form of automaton, a self-operating machine. It may also refer to:* "Automata", a short story by E. T. A. Hoffmann* "Automata", a hardboiled science fiction crime series by Penny Arcade...
. Hillier was educated at Reigate Grammar School
Reigate Grammar School
Reigate Grammar School is an independent co-educational day school located in the town of Reigate, Surrey, United Kingdom. Intake is from 11 to 18, with the majority of its pupils entering at the age of 11, and others entering at 13 and 16.- History :...
and Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
where he won the Gladstone Memorial Prize for History. He was employed as a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
on The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
in 1963.
In 1968 his book Art Deco of the 20s and 30s was published by Studio Vista. This was the first major work on a hitherto neglected period of art, which had been previously been referred to by various names. His use of the term Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
became definitive. A year later, also by Studio Vista, he published a book concentrating on the art of caricature from the 13th century to the then present day. The book was simply entitled Cartoons and Caricatures. In 1971 he curated a major Art Deco show at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts
Minneapolis Institute of Arts
The Minneapolis Institute of Arts is a fine art museum located in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, on a campus that covers nearly 8 acres , formerly Morrison Park...
.
His major work, the authorised biography of Sir John Betjeman
John Betjeman
Sir John Betjeman, CBE was an English poet, writer and broadcaster who described himself in Who's Who as a "poet and hack".He was a founding member of the Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture...
, was published by John Murray
John Murray (publisher)
John Murray is an English publisher, renowned for the authors it has published in its history, including Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Lord Byron, Charles Lyell, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Herman Melville, and Charles Darwin...
in three parts, appearing in 1988, 2002 and 2004. The work had taken him 25 years to research and write. A one-volume abridgement was published in 2006 for Betjeman's centenary. Hillier has also written books on ceramics, posters, cartoons and caricatures. He is a lead reviewer for The Spectator
The Spectator
The Spectator is a weekly British magazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by David and Frederick Barclay, who also owns The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture...
.
In 1983, his work The Style of the Century was published, and it has since been reprinted. The book is a review of the various styles of the 20th Century, from Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
through psychedelia, pop art
Pop art
Pop art is an art movement that emerged in the mid 1950s in Britain and in the late 1950s in the United States. Pop art challenged tradition by asserting that an artist's use of the mass-produced visual commodities of popular culture is contiguous with the perspective of fine art...
and punk.
Betjeman letter hoax
In August 2006 a rival biography of Betjeman was published by A. N. WilsonA. N. Wilson
Andrew Norman Wilson is an English writer and newspaper columnist, known for his critical biographies, novels, works of popular history and religious views...
, but was discovered to contain a hoax letter, purportedly by Betjeman, but actually containing an insulting acrostic to Wilson. The letter was sent to Wilson by "Eve de Harben", an anagram of "Ever been had?", and the first letters of each sentence, beginning with the second, spelt out the message "AN Wilson is a shit". Hillier was an immediate suspect: the Sunday Times
The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
article revealing the hoax was accompanied by a prominent picture of Hillier, and noted that an envelope containing a letter supposedly from de Harben to the newspaper had been bought in Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
, his home town.
Hillier initially denied responsibility, but soon admitted that he had written the letter. He explained that he had been angered by Wilson's negative review of the second volume of his biography of Betjeman, and by pre-publication publicity for Wilson's own biography.
Books
- Hillier B Art Deco of the 20s and 30s (Studio Vista/Dutton picturebacks, 1968) ISBN 9780289277881
Articles
Review of James Knox, Cartoons and coronets : the genius of Osbert LancasterOsbert Lancaster
Sir Osbert Lancaster, CBE was an English cartoonist, author, art critic and stage designer, best known to the public at large for his cartoons published in the Daily Express.-Biography:Lancaster was born in London, England...
(Frances Lincoln, 2008) ISBN 9780711229334.