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Lessons from the Denney Collection : 2Anthony Denney : Vogue Photographer : Interior Designer : Art Collector |
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CareerAnthony Denney (2), born in 1913, studied Fine Art at the Royal College of Art. During World War II he was in the Royal Engineers (3), finally ending up in India with the rank of Captain and engaged in Military Intelligence, visiting Tibet and China in the process. While he was in India, his earlier photographic work (4) was brought to the attention of Audrey Withers, then editor of Vogue, leading him to post-war prominence as Decorations Editor (5) and to other work for the Condé Naste organisation and to a parallel career advising the famous and wealthy on interior design. |
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Anthony Denney as a collector
Always a perceptive collector, he became fascinated by new trends in art during the 1950’s and 1960’s (6). His keen eye spotted promising artists before they became known such as Appel, Burri (7), Dubuffet, Fontana, Imai, Mathieu (8) and the Japanese Gutai Group and he bought works from them at very reasonable prices. These are all artists whose works have since become much sought after. Selection from Collection |
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Uncle Anty's Album |
First Marriage in England 1940
Anthony Denney’s civil marriage in 1940 to the children’s writer Diana Ross (9) - by whom he had three children (10) - ended in divorce in 1950 and, for the next twenty years, he lived partly in England and partly in Spain. |
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Second Marriage in Spain 1970
In 1970 he moved permanently to Spain and married his second wife Celia
Royde-Smith (11). In the early 1980’s he and
his wife removed from Alicante to the isolated and ruined 12C Crusader
Castle of Salvatierra de los Barros (12) in Extremadura
- bought for less than £1000 - which they then restored.(13)
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Retirement and permanent residence in Spain
Taking up permanent residence in Spain in 1970 meant finding homes for his many pictures and sculptures. The Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) - on being offered the pick of 137 items - chose to accept 30 of the best (14). At the end of April 1990, twenty years later, 23 pictures - worth several million pounds - were still on loan to the DMA.( 15) |
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Section 2 : References3 First of all in an RE Chemical Warfare company
near Porton Down and then at the Camouflage school at Farnham Castle
5 Excellent examples of his photographic portraits are those of the Sadler’s Wells Theatre Ballet in Vogue May 1952 pp112-113. See also the Vogue Internet Archive December 1946 and September 1947 6 House & Garden April 1955 pp 54-57, L’Oeil June 1959 pp72- 79, House & Garden July-August 1971 pp 60-63, Maison et Jardin April 1973 pp94-96 7 Sacco IV 1954 and several others. 8 Mathieu’s Battle of Hastings, formerly at the French Institute in London and also moved to Toulouse after April 30th 1990.  9 b 1910 Best known for ‘The Little Red Engine’ books, beginning with ‘The Little Red Engine gets a name’ Story Diana Ross, pictures Lewitt-Him Faber & Faber 1942. 10 Twins Sarah, Teresa (b 1942) and Timothy (b 1946). 11 b England 1948. The Civil Register of Javea, Alicante Vol 27 p 236 no 3 records the celebration of a canonical marriage in the Parish of San Bartolome, Javea on 18 February 1970 between John Anthony Denney, soltero (batchelor), and Celia Mercedes Royde-Smith, soltera (spinster), both domiciled at La Alfarella, Finestrat, Alicante. 12 Built on the Syrian pattern 13 The nearest towns of any size to Salvatierra are Zafra and Badajoz. To give some idea of distances, travel there from Madrid takes about six hours by express bus. 14 Denney Correspondence Dallas Museum of Art
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