The papers form an incomplete set of the private and public records created by Sir
Philip Hendy, between 1924 and 1980, the majority of which are from his time as Director
of the NG. They include official administrative documentation; notes, drafts and final
copies of his writings and publications; press cuttings; and diaries and correspondence.
Philip Hendy was born at Carlisle in 1900. He was elected a King's scholar of Westminster
in 1914 and a Westminster exhibitioner of Christ Church, Oxford in 1919. He obtained
his BA degree in modern history in 1923 and his MA in 1937.
In 1923, PH was appointed lecturer at the Wallace Collection, London, where he specialised
in French painting and decorative arts. In 1924, he also took on the position of Assistant
Keeper. At the Wallace Collection he immediately began work on a new edition of the
catalogue, which was published in 1928. On the strength of this catalogue, PH was
invited to catalogue the paintings of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston.
Financed by the trustees of the museum, PH lived in Florence for three years researching
the catalogue, which was published in 1931.
In 1930, PH became the Curator of the Department of Paintings at the Museum of Fine
Arts in Boston. It was here that he first became involved in buying pictures and organising
exhibitions. PH acquired many Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and other European
paintings, not all to the taste of the trustees. He resigned after a quarrel in 1933.
PH returned to England and in 1934, he accepted the Directorship of the Leeds City
Art Gallery. The onset of the Second World War necessitated the removal of the Gallery
to nearby Temple Newsam House in 1939. Here, PH was responsible for the redecoration
of the house and the re-hanging of the paintings, which he carried out to much acclaim.
During this time PH lectured regularly at Leeds and Oxford Universities and between
1936 and 1946, he was the Slade Professor of Fine Arts at Oxford University.
His success at Temple Newsam led to his appointment in 1946 as Director of the NG.
His first task was to rehabilitate the Gallery's exhibition rooms and pictures after
the effects of the war. In 1947, he put together an exhibition of cleaned paintings
that occasioned much criticism and resulted in a government inquiry. During the 1950s
and 1960s, PH led the NG through many difficult years of development and changes to
its administrative structure, and made many notable acquisitions. In 1961, he offered
to resign after the theft of Goya's portrait of the Duke of Wellington. The trustees
would not accept his resignation, but security measures were tightened. The painting
was returned in 1965.
PH had many loyal friends and colleagues at the NG, among them Henry Moore, Lord Robbins
and Sir John Witt. After a significant career he resigned from the NG in 1967, having
spent 21 years at the helm. After his resignation from the NG, PH spent three years
as adviser to the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
PH was involved in a number of professional bodies. In 1943, he became a Councillor
for the Museums Association and was its President between 1956 and 1958. He was Chairman
of the British Council's Fine Arts Committee between 1956 and 1959 and President of
the International Council of Museums (ICOM) between 1959 and 1965, and of the ICOM
Foundation between 1968 and c.1973. Socially he was a member of the Beefsteak Club
and the Athenaeum Club. He was knighted in 1950.
Throughout his career PH wrote and lectured on a wide range of topics. He published
twelve books and contributed to many more. At various times he wrote regularly for
the New Statesman, The Daily Herald, The Listener, The London Mercury and Britain
Today. He travelled widely and often, studying art and artists and visiting galleries.
In 1975, PH suffered a severe stroke and spent his last years being cared for by his
second wife, Cicely. He died in Oxford in 1980
The collection was created by Philip Hendy and removed from the National Gallery by
him when he resigned in 1967. It remained in the possession of the Hendy family until
it was donated to the NG in 1993. At this time, it underwent a basic appraisal and
a rough list of the contents was compiled.
Two items were acquired separately but have been integrated into the collection: NGA3/2/3/34
was donated to the National Gallery Archive by Jennifer Fletcher in May 2003. NGA3/2/1/14
was transferred from the National Gallery Library in May 2003
The collection was appraised briefly at the time of acquisition, and further at the
time of listing. Approximately one box of duplicate items were destroyed. A large
quantity of photographs of works of art were transferred to the Photographic Library
This archive has been arranged into 9 series as follows:
NGA3/1 Leeds City Art Gallery
NGA3/2 National Gallery Working Papers
NGA3/3 Israel Museum
NGA3/4 Philip Hendy's writings and research
NGA3/5 Philip Hendy's Correspondence
NGA3/6 Museums Association Papers
NGA3/7 British Council
NGA3/8 International Council of Museums (ICOM)
NGA3/9 Biographical information
Open
NGA3/2/1/4 is closed until 2037
NG16 Director's Office Subject Files: NG16/333
Letters from PH to Lord Clark, Director of the NG 1938 to 1946, at the Tate Gallery
Archive, reference 8812 (NRA 32463 Clark).