1. John Craxton was sometimes called a neo-Romantic artist but he preferred to be known as a "kind of Arcadian".
13 Facts About John Craxton
1. 2.
John Craxton went to Clayesmore School but left without qualifications.
3.
John Craxton applied for Chelsea School of Art but was considered to be too young to attend nude life classes.
4.
John Craxton's work was seen as part of the neo-romantic revival, and his early pre-1945 work shows the influence of Sutherland and Samuel Palmer, and he was heavily influenced by friend and patron Peter Watson.
5.
John Craxton moved permanently to Crete from about 1970, and switched between living in Crete and in London.
6.
In 1951 John Craxton was a ballet designer for the production of Daphnis et Chloe by the Sadler's Wells Ballet at Covent Garden, at a time when ballet stage design provided a haven for the neo-Romantic arts.
7.
John Craxton was able to use his first-hand experience of Greece to inform his ballet designs.
8.
John Craxton had numerous shows of his paintings in both England and Greece.
9.
John Craxton produced the scenery and costumes for the Royal Opera House's 1968 production of Igor Stravinsky's Apollo.
10.
John Craxton's work was reproduced in magazines such as New Writing, Horizon, and he has illustrated the books of Patrick Leigh Fermor.
11.
John Craxton produced lithographs for several anthologies edited by Geoffrey Grigson, including Visionary Poems.
12.
John Craxton lived and worked in both Chania, Crete and London.
13.
John Craxton died aged 87, survived by his long-term partner Richard Riley.