Person    | Male  Born 6/4/1921  Died 5/7/2000

Franta Belsky

Categories: Sculpture

Countries: Czechoslovakia

Born Czechoslovakia as Frantisek Belsky. Fled 3 times, twice to escape the Nazis and then again from the Communists. Ornamental Passions we learn that all Belsky's sculptures contain an empty Guinness bottle, the day's newspaper, a sixpence and a note stating that he was the artist.

Other works in London: the 1957 Shell fountain in front of the Shell Building on the South Bank and The Lesson in Bethnal Green.

From Radio Prague International: "He served in the Battle of France, was twice mentioned in the dispatches during the war and saw Winston Churchill at an inspection after the evacuation at Dunkirk. .. After the war, Bělský returned to Czechoslovakia and studied sculpting. However, his studies were disrupted when Bělský escaped Czechoslovakia a second time after the Communist coup d’etat in 1948, but he soon found himself learning again, this time at the Royal College of Art in London. The artist’s first major commission came at the Festival of Britain in 1951. ... Bělský became the official sculptor of the royal family, creating the busts of Queen Elizabeth II, as well as of the princes Philip, William, Andrew and the queen mother."

2023: English Radio CZ has a very informative interview with Bohumil Vostal, the author of a book about Belsky "He Portraited the Queen of England".

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This section lists the memorials created by the subject on this page:
Franta Belsky

Creations i

Cunningham bust

Unveiled by Prince Philip in 1967. Inside the bust there is a ½ pint Guinness...

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Mountbatten statue

9 foot 5 inches, bronze on a plinth at the centre of a low stepped platform. ...

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Tattersall's auction yard

This sculpture 'Triga' recalls the racehorses that were bought and sold on th...

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Other Subjects

Charles Samuel Kelsey

Charles Samuel Kelsey

His father, James Kelsey, was also a sculptor.

Person, Sculpture

1 memorial
George Henry Paulin

George Henry Paulin

Sculptor.  born Scotland.  Known as Harry.  Served inWW1 first in the army as a trooper, then in the Royal Flying Corps, then in the  Royal Naval Air Service which became the Royal Air Force.  So h...

Person, Sculpture, Scotland

1 memorial
Charles Bell Birch

Charles Bell Birch

Sculptor.  Born Brixton.  Studied in Berlin.  Died at King's College Hospital.  We know of only two works displayed in the open in London: the two memorials listed here: Victoria and the Temple Bar...

Person, Sculpture, Germany

3 memorials
Sir William Reid Dick

Sir William Reid Dick

Born Glasgow. Reid was his mother's maiden name.  Other work in London: 1936 - Boy with Frog fountain in Regent's Park and The Herald at 85 Fleet Street.  Died at home in 16 Maida Vale in the house...

Person, Sculpture, Scotland

10 memorials
Bruce Denny

Bruce Denny

Sculptor. Born in Suffolk.

Person, Sculpture

1 memorial

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Laurence Olivier, Baron Olivier

Laurence Olivier, Baron Olivier

Born Dorking, Surrey, as Laurence Kerr Olivier. With his wife Vivien Leigh, he managed the St James's Theatre from 1950 to its closure in 1957. Founding Director of the National Theatre, 1963 - 197...

Person, Cinema, Seriously Famous, Theatre

3 memorials