As two important works by Sir Winston Churchill are offered in the upcoming Modern British & Irish Art sale at Bonhams in London, we examine the politician’s relationship with his craft, and his dedication to the medium of painting as he stood back from political life.

Sir Winston Churchill’s journey as an artist began at the age of 40, in the summer of 1915 when he and his family rented Hoe Farm, near Godalming in Surrey. It was here, during a period of intense political turmoil following the ill-fated Gallipoli campaign of World War 1, that a love of painting was born. Weekends were spent alongside Lady Gwendoline Churchill, wife of Winston’s younger brother Jack and a keen amateur artist and painter of watercolours, who encouraged him in this pursuit. From this moment he was hooked and discovered an antidote to the pressures of public life, which resulted in over 500 works by the time he reached old age, spanning numerous subjects from both home and travels abroad.