Oliver Messel Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

OLIVER MESSEL (1904-1978) Costume Design for Vivian Leigh in Caesar and Cleopatra - 1945 Signed l.r.: Oliver Messel, inscribed u.r.: Cleopatra at her party in Rome Watercolour and chalks heightened with white and gold paint Framed 14 ¼ by 9 ½ in., 36 by 24 cm. (Frame size 26 by 21 ¼ in., 66 by 54 cm.) Born in London, Messel was the grandson of the illustrator Linley Sambourne. After Eton he studied art at the Slade School of Art and by the early 1930s had established himself as one of Britain’s principal stage designers. Initially working for the Cochran Revues, he went on to design for many theatrical, operatic, ballet and film productions. His books included Stage Designs and Costumes, 1933; Designs for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 1957 and Delightful Food, 1958. He exhibited at the Leicester Galleries and Redfern Gallery and also designed interiors and gardens of the Dorchester Hotel, Flaxley Abbey, Gloucestershire and elsewhere as well as several houses and grounds in Barbados and Mustique. The Victoria & Albert Museum hold the majority of his design archives. The present work is a costume design for the 1945 film Caesar and Cleopatra, directed by Gabriel Pascal and staring Claude Rains, Vivien Leigh, Stewart Granger and Flora Robson. Messel designed the costumes, props and interior decorations for what was billed as one of the most lavish movies of all times, costing over a million pounds...

OLIVER MESSEL (1904-1978) Group of six paintings: Dancer The Medium Ceasar and Cleopatra Costume Design Ceasar and Cleopatra Costume Design Ceasar and ...

Oliver Hilary Sambourne Messel (13 January 1904 – 13 July 1978) was an English artist and one of the foremost stage designers of the 20th century. Juliet's Bedroom from the Estate o...

OLIVER MESSEL (1904-1978) Figaro – The Barber of Seville, 1954 Signed l.r.: Messel Watercolour and chalks Framed 33 by 21.5 cm., 13 by 8 ½ in. (frame...

Original Oliver Messel (1904-1978) pencil signed (LR) watercolour with gouache highlights depicting a fashionable lady in her theatrical costume. Image sz: 14 1/4"H x 9 3/4" in custom J. Pocker & Son frame! Artist Bio: Oliver Hilary Sambourne Messel, (1904-1978) attended Eton College and the Slade School of Fine Art at University College of London, the UK’s leading art and design educational institution. He started his illustrious career as a portrait painter and then evolved into a set and costume designer for theater, opera, ballet and film. Messel's first professional commission was for the ballet Zephyr and Flora (1925). By the early 1930s, Messel was established as one of the foremost stage designers in Britain with an imaginative flair and highly-stylized approach. His work on the film Romeo and Juliet (1936) earned him two Oscar nominations. Messel’s most famous production was The Sleeping Beauty designed for the Sadler’s Wells (now Royal) Ballet in 1946. Messel was inventive, practical and entirely theatrical. Endlessly seeking perfection, he supervised every detail. Before creating anything, he immersed himself in the play - in the overall mood and the director’s interpretation. He then created the settings to reflect it. He became the toast of London’s theatre set, with legions of talented friends including Hollywood stars. Messel was also a favorite uncle to Tony Armstrong...