Bassett Fitzgerald WILSON (1888-1972?)

Individual Events and Attributes

Marriage

Individual Note

Studied at Trinity College, Cambridge where he read Law. Took up painting after being injured in the First World War. In 1917 held an exhibition of Western Front work at Walker's Galleries. During the 1920's with his wife Muriel Wilson established his reputation as a painter. Exhibited together in an exhibition in 1921 at Walker's Galleries, then in 1925 in a group show with John Cosmo Clark and Roland Vivian Pitchforth at Goupil Gallery. Bassett held a one man show in 1927 at the Fine Art Society in Bond Street. Were drawn into the modern movement in the 1930's after they moved to Paris and made friends with artists such as Andre Lhote, in whose studio they both worked from time to time. In 1930 showed at Knoedler's in New York and Chicago. Exhibited with his wife at Reid and Lefevre Gallery in London; Darlington Municipal Art Gallery - Bassett's watercolour was purchased by the town's permanent collection, at Salon des Tuileries and Galerie Gerbo in Paris (where Bassett's Stacked Chairs was selected for particular mention in Sud) and with Rhyma Grop at Helsingfors in Finland ( the two Wilsons and Lhote were invited to represent the best and most modern in European art) in 1934. In 1935-37 showed in a number of exhibitions in Paris. Bassett joined the British Expeditionary Force in his old rank of Captain for the duration of the Second World War. In 1946 Bassett held a large retrospective at Galerie du Bac, Paris from which National Museum of Modern Art, Paris purchased one work from his Chairs series - the Chairs of Luxembourg Gardens. Patrick Seale held a show of Wilson's work in 1981.