George Weissbort was born in Brussels, Belgium in 1928 – at five years old he and his family moved to London.
Initially training under Arthur Segal, during the Second World War Weissbort attended the central School of Arts and Crafts. It was there he studied under tutors such as Bernard Meninsky, John Farleigh, Ruskin Spear and Rodrigo Moynihan.
The art critic, Brian Sewell, referred to Weissbort as an artist who ‘painted the right pictures at the wrong time’. Anthony Rudolf quotes – ‘To paint in the spirit of Poussin, Chardin, Piero, Vermeer and Holbein in the 21st century is, for this painter, a radical project of artistic reclamation and psychic renewal’. George’s relentless dedication to the painterly beauty of the visible world can be considered one man’s protest against the pretension of modern art, calling for a return to ‘order, stability and harmony’.
George Weissbort: ‘My advice is to avoid intellectualisation if possible. Always be aware of projection – reading thoughts, intentions, meaning into a work of art that are not inherent in its aesthetic characteristics, its syntax. Unfortunately, semantic rather than syntactical considerations account for most of what today passes for art criticism.’
George Weissbort painted many notable portraits, to include those of the Chief Rabbi Dr Israel Brodie, Dr Johnathan Miller and Lord Manny Shinwell. Weissbort’s oeuvre also includes landscapes, and numerous painted still life, natures mortes scenes in which the immense skill of the artist can be truly appreciated. George has had a number of one man shows to include – London; Schwartz and Sacking gallery Bond Street, Paris; The Gallery Andre Weil, Belgium, Germany and Mexico. He continues to be exhibited and his work is in collections worldwide.
‘From an early age I loved the visible world. All my days have been passed in continuing amazement at its beauty. The obsessive aim of my life has been to examine and discover what it really looks like: in short to see as it is’
Biddle & Webb Auctioneers and Valuers are proud to offer a small selection of George’s works in the Saturday 15th September Jewellery, Silver, Watches and Interiors Auction. For more information, please visit our catalogue:
http://www.biddleandwebb.com/auctioncatalogue.cfm?saleid=505