Copyright© The Carlyle Brown Archives
From February 21st 1947, Gramercy Park, New York:
" The lapse in my journal is a plaguing thought.....
Last night saw the Ballet Society presentation of "The Medium", an opera by Gian-Carlo Menotti.
I was gratified from both artistic and entertainment viewpoints...
...Marie Powers as the medium was superb.
The audience cheered, all in all it was a rousing success.
Margery and I took the Madison Avenue bus with Henri Cartier-Bresson and Edie*.
Also on the bus (there was a terrific snowstorm outside) was Peter Watson** looking tan
and rather wonderful in a bulky sheepskin-collared jacket.
He told me he had just flown in from Cuernavaca and that Mexico was beautiful now.
He stays here for only a short time, returning to London. He's head after Cagli***.
He liked "The Medium" very much...
*Edith Capa, wife of Cornell Capa, hungarian-american photographer
** Peter Watson, british art collector, editor
** Corrado Cagli, italian painter
From December 3rd 1947, Wednesday evening, Gramercy Park, New York:
“At Madame Paul Kochanski's for tea Pavlik* said of travel
“I do my travelling in my mind - I can go further and I need no passport”
*Pavel Tchelitchew, russian-american painter
"Last night I worked on drawings for a stupid story about soldiers for the nice
Mr. Lynes of Harper's Magazine. I simply forgot all about the notes I had taken
from the manuscript and made several drawings of soldiers (or not soldiers)
lying and standing in doorways. I will try some more tonight" (See Catalogue year 1948)
"Today I began again on Edward's portrait painting a "milky" gauze over the
hitherto exasperating face trying to bear in mind all that Pavlik said about portraits.
"Paint Edward when Edward is not there". "Paint from memory".
"Shut your eyes and whole face will appear before them." (See Catalogue year 1948)
From December 14th 1947, Sunday night, Gramercy Park, New York:
“We went to a cocktail party with Pavlik.
He talked of portrait painting…..saying to forget what anyone wants in their portrait -
to paint the opposite of what they want.
To see the relationships between human beings and animals, flowers, trees etc. The parallel.
Discover what animal a certain person reminds you of for example”
From February 8th 1948, Sunday night, Gramercy Park, New York:
“Pavlik wants us all to take a house in Guatemala - but we are convinced he will stay on here.
As he said to me over the phone last week, he felt he had to stay in town and “stick banderillas”
into people so as to keep them aware of his existence, his presence.”
From March 28th 1948, West Dean Park, Sussex, England:
“I have a studio in another wing than my rooms with Margery.
It is the “Oak Room” and strangely enough I chose it from many others
as a place to work only to find that both Tchelitchew and Dalì had used it before.
As a matter of fact I am using some of Dalì's paints and a palette that he left.”
From April 2nd 1948, West Dean Park, Sussex, England:
“Then we had luncheon with Edith Sitwell who said of the photos of my paintings:
“ Now I understand why Pavlik has told me so much about you” and
“ I've not been so excited about paintings in many, many years”…
“….Also there was Dylan Thomas, a pretentious bore.”
“……Miss Sitwell reminds me of a white ant-eater.
She is extraordinary beautiful in her way.
Her coloring is superb. Her hands are extraordinary,
they could belong to a girl of twentyfive…”