Churchill Behind the Easel

New Exhibit Opens in Denmark

On Friday, 24 January, a new international exhibition opened in Copenhagen. Winston Churchill: Behind the Easel 1916–1957 is the fourth of five exhibitions about Churchill created by Niels Bjerre, a longtime member of the International Churchill Society (ICS) in Denmark. ICS President Randolph Churchill travelled to Copenhagen to preside at the opening. To watch a video, please CLICK HERE. The segment begins at 16:35

“It has always been a dream to make an exhibition about Churchill’s greatest pastime, painting,” explained Bjerre. “But this exhibition was much more of a challenge to create than the previous ones I have put together. In 2020 I met with Gordon Wise at Curtis Brown in London, and the agency agreed with the Churchill family to give me permission to do it.” Unfortunately, the Covid epidemic then intervened. The project was finally completed last autumn and consists of nineteen “X-banners,” which are handy for travel, so the exhibition can be displayed virtually anywhere.

Sir Winston’s granddaughter Edwina Sandys has written an introduction, and fifty of Churchill’s best paintings are featured in the display. There are also five banners with photographs of Churchill engaged in painting and text describing his life during the period in which he painted most,1916-1957.

Around thirty invited guests—including the Moroccan Ambassador to Denmark, Mrs. Khadija Rouissi—were present at Frederiksberg Town Hall for the dedication. In his welcoming speech, Lord Mayor of Frederiksberg Michael Vindfeldt mentioned Churchill’s visit to Copenhagen in 1950, during which he spoke in nearby K.B. Hallen. The local news reported that “Churchill is the man who, through his genius and unyielding strength of character, has shaped our destiny more than anyone else.”

Randolph Churchill gave the formal opening speech and led a toast with Pol Roger champagne. Bjerre closed the speeches by thanking everyone who had helped with the exhibit. Randolph also did a short interview with Frederiksberg Local TV and visited Churchillparken, where the Oscar Nemon bust of Churchill stands near the Museum for The Danish Resistance 1940–1945.

“I always want to make an exhibition that pulls people into the subject and gets them interested,” Bjerre said. “It is my hope that this new exhibition will travel around Denmark and perhabs the UK.”

Bulletin #201 — Feb 2025