John Bellany

Their initial interest was in impressionism but with their common Scottish background they looked toward Alan Davie as a connection to a greater but more accessible artistic world.

[citation needed] In 1968 Bellany graduated and his diploma show was hailed as great success.

[5] Between 1973 and 1978 Bellany had been head of faculty of painting at Croydon College of Art and had met Juliet Lister who he later married.

[6] In 1982 he was offered a show at the Rosa Esman Gallery in New York[7] which presented his work to a greater audience, resulting in purchases to important private collections as well as to the Museum of Modern Art.

[8] In 1984, following an impromptu holiday in France with his first wife and family he was diagnosed with liver disease, a consequence of his alcoholism.

[12] In 2003 Damien Hirst came out as an admirer of Bellany and bought several of his works as well as praising him as one of the major painters of the twentieth century.

[11] In 2017, Fortnum & Mason in collaboration with art collector Frank Cohen presented an exhibition of work in partnership with The Bellany Estate.

Curated by Robert Upstone, former Director of The Fine Art Society and Head of Modern British Art at Tate, the exhibition featured paintings from all periods of Bellany's career, and was the largest exhibition of the artist's work since his death in 2013.

[19] The National Gallery of Scotland held a major exhibition of his work, "John Bellany: A Passion for Life", shortly after his death, November 2012 – January 2013.