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

F. Brook Hitch

F. Brook Hitch

Born London. Lived in Hertford. RBS. Our colleague Andrew Behan has researched this man, and found him at Mapping Sculpture, where the date of birth is given as 1877 which conflicts with Wikipedia...

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Lillie Read

Lillie Read

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Dora Gordine

Dora Gordine

Born Latvia. First visited London in 1926. The Picture Source website provides a biography. Married Richard Hare and built, with him, Dorich House which is where she died and is now a museum. For ...

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1 memorial
Walter Gilbert

Walter Gilbert

Sculptor.  Born Rugby.  Cousin to Sir Alfred Gilbert.  His son, Donald, also sculpted and they often worked together.  Other works in London include: some gates at the Freemasons Hall (inside or ou...

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José Simões de Almeida

José Simões de Almeida

Sculptor. Born at Figueiró dos Vinhos, Portugal. Known as 'Nephew' to distinguish him from his uncle who had the same name and was also a sculptor. He trained at the School of Fine Arts of Lisbon. ...

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1 memorial