John Richardson | At Home

15 April 2019

Before his death in March 2019, Sir John Richardson (Chatham 42) complied a autobiography focused on the extraordinary houses he had lived in throughout his life, accompanied by beautiful photography by François Halard. In this book, the world-renowned art historian and Picasso biographer opens the doors to the handsome rooms he occupied during his remarkable life.

Sir John’s aristocratically bohemian interiors have been filled with fine antiques; works of art by such legendary friends as Pablo Picasso, George Braque, Lucian Freud and Andy Warhol; richly layered textiles; bold colours and decorative objects that caught his discerning eye. In stories about residences in the South of France (at the Château de Castile with celebrated collector and art historian Douglas Cooper), England (the stately buildings and landscapes of Stowe and Albany on Piccadilly in London), and the United States (glamorous New York City apartments and country retreat in Connecticut), Sir John shares his life with a fascinating coterie of friends and acquaintances, resulting in a spellbinding and gloriously illustrated residential autobiography of a true connoisseur.

This beautiful book is essential reading for those interested in twentieth-century art and social history, grandly liveable interiors, and the extraordinary life of a modern man. Old Stoics will particularly enjoy the chapter focused on Sir John’s time at Stowe in the 1940s.

“Everyday exposure to Vanbrugh’s and Adam’s facades and Capability Brown’s landscaping engendered a taste for classical architecture, which developed into a passion.”

Sir John was in touch with Anna McEvoy, Stowe House Custodian, in 2018 when working on this project. A copy of the completed book has recently arrived for the Stowe library. This book is the final chapter of Sir John’s contribution to art history and shines a light on his incredible life.  

The book can be purchased on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/John-Richardson-At-Home/dp/0847863883

ISBN 978-0-8478-6388-4