“I was to grow up with the great expanse of sea before my eyes. I remember the first sensation of a gentle wave crawling up to my toes and ankles. Later on, as the summer seasons repeated themselves, I became more and more conscious of the reality of things…Under the pier women would be sewing in the shade. This streak of shadow contrasted sharply with the glamour of the surrounding colour which emanated from the pebble beach, white with dazzling light, spotted with multicoloured parasols; from the post of the diving-pier green with seaweed; from the flags over the bathing huts limp with heat; and from the town standing remote as a background to this picture with its elegant villas stretching to the hills. This was the scene which gave painters like Dufy and Friesz infinite subjects to paint.” – Paul Lucien Maze

Artistic Beginnings in Le Havre

Le Havre was to play an important part in  Paul's artistic development. As a young artist and still living at home, he met Camille Pissarro, Raoul Dufy, and George Braque, but Le Havre was also where he volunteered for the British Army. A spur of the moment decision on 18th August 1914 that was to change the course of his life forever.

Having heard that the British Army were disembarking in Le Havre, he visited the port and on seeing the horses of The Royal Scots Greys “It was as though fate had linked me with them!” Having worked in the family export business in Liverpool and Hamburg, Paul was fluent in English and German and he managed to persuade the commanding officer to take him on as an interpreter. He was later transferred to the British 5th Army Headquarters’ staff and was awarded the British Distinguished Conduct Medal and the Military Medal with bar, as well as the French Croix de Guerre and the Legion d’honneur.

The Adoption of Pastel

In 1920, he married Margaret Nelson and moved to Achnacloich in Scotland but spent much of his time in their London residence at 14 Chelsea Embankment as well as the studio in Paris that he had moved into after the War. He enjoyed taking his well-connected English patrons such as the Earl of Sandwich, the Duke of Buccleuch, the Duchess of Marlborough or Lord Manners to his Paris studio and introduce them to his fellow artists such as Pierre Bonnard, Andr. Dunoyer de Segonzac and Andr. Derain.

It was in 1932 that Paul met Eduard Vuillard during a visit to London and it was Vuillard who advised Maze to concentrate on working in pastel, introducing him to Le Maison du Pastel in Paris, who had supplied pastels to the likes of Redon and Degas as well as Vuillard and Bonnard.

In 1935, Paul met and fell in love with Jesse. Ending his marriage amicably with Margaret, the couple lived in London and France, finally settling after World War II in the West Sussex village of Treyford where they happily remained for the rest of their lives.

The Circle Around Paul Maze

Dru Montagu, whose collection is being sold, was introduced to Paul Maze by the Earl of Sandwich, his grandfather. I was lucky enough to be asked by Dru to catalogue Paul’s work and help him write his autobiography. Laurance Rockefeller, whom I met at Mill Cottage, the Maze’s home in Sussex, offered to sponsor the book and I was enormously grateful to Laurance as I knew how much he and his brother David appreciated Paul’s work as well as his company.

Paul Maze could be considered a chronicler of life in Great Britain in the 20th Century. Under his bony long fingers, the coloured chalks bring to life all the sporting activities which were a full part of British society’s sporting calendar: rowing at Henley, racing at Goodwood and Ascot, sailing at Royal Cowes, and all military parades.

He was a French artist enamoured with light and colour, movement and lightness.

What separates him from other pastel artists is the lightness of his touch. He barely skims the paper with the chalk before applying another stroke with the dexterity of floating feathers often leaving some of the surface bare yet finished!

A retrospective of his work would encompass the agenda of British sporting events and pageantry as well as seasonal landscapes. In a more intimiste genre, bathing or dressing scenes, still lives and interiors where Jessie was often the main subject, he concentrated on engendering a strong feeling of warmth and tenderness.

Anne Singer
Author of Paul Maze the Lost Impressionist, Aurum Press, 1983

The Artist and Sir Winston Churchill

"My dear Monsieur Maze I am at present busy with being minister of finance, but I look forward to painting and I shall come to you to the fountain of knowledge". (Letter from Sir Winston Churchill to Paul Maze, quoted in a transcript of an interview between Paul Maze and Wolfgang Fischer for the Preface to the Paul Maze 80th Birthday Exhibition).
 
Paul Maze first met Churchill on the Western Front in 1916 and the two men went on to become lifelong friends and regular sketching companions, including painting together in France, just weeks before the Second World War broke out. Paul Maze often served as an artistic mentor, helping to develop Churchill’s technique, whilst Churchill’s friendship opened doors for the artist and helped secure commissions for military events, as well as his appointment to record the funeral of King George VI and as Official Painter for the coronation for Queen Elizabeth II. In 2022, an exhibition held at Blenheim Palace entitled Paul Maze and Winston Churchill: Companions of the Brush, encapsulated their close ties (see 'Cowes Regatta, Isle of Wight, 1930').  
 

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Auction Details

Wednesday 11 March 2026, 10.30am GMT

Dreweatts, Donnington Priory, Newbury, Berkshire RG14 2JE

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