Art Historian and London Library Vice-President
We were saddened to hear of the death on 12 March of Sir John Richardson, celebrated art historian and a Vice-President of The London Library since 2014.
During his long life (he died, aged 95 on the 12 March 2019) he became celebrated as a leading authority on Pablo Picasso and the avant-garde. The first volume of his acclaimed biography of Picasso was published in 1991 and won the Whitbread Book of the Year award. Two further volumes were published in 1996 and 2007 respectively. The fourth was still in progress when Sir John died.
His two volume memoir The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1999) and Sacred Monsters, Sacred Masters (2001) recorded his life with the art critic Douglas Cooper, and the many connections Richardson developed with the avant-garde in the south of France after the Second World War and then with a range of artists and contacts in the art world in Britain and the US.
In 1994, he presented Richardson on Picasso, a BBC series of half-hour programmes related to the Tate’s Picasso exhibition. He presented a Channel 4 Picasso series in 2001, and contributed to a range of TV programmes about Picasso and other artists.
In the post-Cooper years (the pair separated in 1958), Richardson lived in New York where he had access to most of the big American collectors, worked for the American office of Christie’s and contributed to a range of journals including the New York Review of Books, Vanity Fair and Burlington Magazine. From 2008 he also worked as a consultant to the Gagosian Gallery in New York, where he organised six Picasso exhibitions, the last of which took place in 2017.
He was knighted in 2012 and in 2013 The London Library awarded him their Life in Literature Award. In 2014 he became a Vice-President of the Library, a position he held for the rest of his life.
Applications for the Emerging Writers Programme are now closed. Applicants will be notified during the second half of April.
The London Library – which has been a centre for great writing and great writers for over 175 years - today announced the launch of its new Emerging Writers Programme, geared towards supporting writers at the start of their careers and helping develop their work. The Programme offers writers one year’s membership of The London Library (which normally costs £535 per annum) alongside writing development masterclasses, literary networking opportunities, peer support and guidance in use of the Library’s resources. The Programme runs from 2 May 2019 – 1 May 2020.
The Library’s Emerging Writers Programme is open to anyone who is committed to pursuing a career in writing (for publication or performance) and wants to develop their work. Applicants should be working on, or planning, a specific project which will make extensive use of the Library’s resources and is intended for publication or production. The Programme is targeted at emerging writers who have not yet published a full-length work of fiction, non-fiction or a collection of poems, or had a full-length work professionally produced for mainstream film, TV or the stage.
The Programme has been established with the help of Library supporters including literary agency AM Heath, The Garrick Charitable Trust, The Golden Bottle Trust, and the Julio and Maria Marta Núñez Memorial Fund, and initially will fund up to 40 places. The closing date for applications is 12pm on Monday 4 March 2019; applications will then be selected anonymously by a panel of judges including London Library Trustee and writer Daisy Goodwin (chair), Head of Prizes and Awards at the Society of Authors Paula Johnson, novelist Nikita Lalwani, and an agent from AM Heath.
Under the Emerging Writers Programme, successful applicants will get free access to the Library’s unique collection which includes over one million books and over 2,500 periodicals titles arranged on open shelves that can all be borrowed. Membership also includes access to extensive online resources and dedicated writing and research spaces in the Library’s extraordinary building in central London.
The Emerging Writers Programme draws on the Library’s long association with writers and thinkers. Many have begun their literary careers here and thousands continue to draw on the Library to explore and develop their work. Author Davina Langdale describes how the Library provided the inspiration for her 2017 debut novel, The Brittle Star. “It would never have come into being without The London Library... It not only provided the research material for the book but it provided the perfect place for me to write.” Novelist Kate Davies described how the Library provided the perfect environment for her to write her first novel, In At The Deep End, appearing in February 2019. “I joined the Library when I left my job to write full time, and I come almost every day. I love writing surrounded by other writers.”
Bill Hamilton, Managing Director of AM Heath commented: “We’re marking our 2019 centenary at the heart of London’s literary life by investing in writers, both established ones and the next generation. As part of this we are sponsoring a number of subscriptions to The London Library for emerging book writers who are not yet published and who might find it hard to afford or get access to such a resource. The number of our established clients who have used this unique working environment long term is testimony to its enduring value.“
Philip Marshall, Director of The London Library, concluded: “The London Library has long been a centre of literary creativity and inspiration. Our new Emerging Writers Programme will provide invaluable support to those beginning the journey towards a writing career, opening up the extensive resources of The London Library to empower their imagination and take forward the projects they are developing.”
Ends -
Notes to Editor
About The Emerging Writers Programme - Eligibility
1. The London Library Emerging Writers Programme is open to anyone aged 16 or over (as of 1 May 2019).
2. Applicants must be UK residents.
3. Applicants must be emerging writers. We define an emerging writer as someone who: has not previously published a novel, full-length non-fiction book, or a collection of poems or short stories; has not had work professionally produced via mainstream channels, studios or theatres for film, television or stage; is not currently under contract to produce any of the above.
This does not include: self-published work; work published online; chapbooks and pamphlets; short stories, articles or poems published within an anthology, journal, magazine or newspaper; works produced non-professionally for film, television or stage or works for fringe theatre productions; textbooks or academic texts
4. The scheme is open to writers of any genre
5. Applicants must be committed to making use of The London Library resources:
Use of the physical space as a base for writing and networking
Use of the collection (both physical and digital) to inspire thought and inform research and writing
For more information about eligibility requirements, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Full details about the Programme, including downloadable application forms, can be found at www.londonlibrary.co.uk/emerging-writers
Our evening opening arrangements for Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays have now changed.
On Mondays and Tuesdays members will be able to use the Library until 9pm.
On Wednesday evenings the Library will normally close at 5.30pm to help support evening venue hire and public events, which are an important source of income for us. On many occasions, however, we will be able to stay open until 9pm as often public events are sufficiently self-contained that they can be hosted in the first floor reading rooms without restricting member access to other parts of the Library. Where this is the case, the Library - with the exception of the Reading Room, Writers' Room and Sackler Study - will remain open to members until 9pm.
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Upcoming dates
The Library will be open until 9pm on the following Wednesdays. Please note, the Reading Room, Sackler Study and Writer's Room will not be open:
6 March
3 April
24 April
8 May
22 May
More to be announced.
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Summary of revised opening hours:
Mondays: 9.30am-9.00pm
Tuesdays: 9.30am-9.00pm
Wednesdays: 9.30am-5.30pm; or 9.30am-9.00pm when events in the Reading Room are compatible with maintaining member access to other parts of the Library
Thursdays: 9.30am-5.30pm
Fridays: 9.30am-5.30pm
Saturdays: 9.30am-5.30pm
Sundays: Closed
The recent AGM (held on 7th November 2018) approved the proposal to increase the ordinary annual fee to £535 (a £10 increase) with effect from January 1st 2019 - but for those paying by annual direct debit the fee will remain at the current price of £510. It was also agreed to extend the maximum age range for Young Person's Membership from 24 to 26.
The £10 increase in ordinary annual membership represents a 1.9% increase. Proportionate increases will be applied for the other membership categories, and life membership fees will be broadly increased by the same percentage as annual fees.
The new rates are as follows:
Individual Membership
Annual membership
Annual - £535 (which can be spread across monthly payments of £44.58)
Payment by annual direct debit - £510
Spouse/partner membership (for spouses or partners of full annual or life members)
Annual - £267.50 (which can be spread across monthly payments of £22.29)
Payment by annual direct debit - £255
Young Persons’ Membership (for all members aged 16-26)
Annual - £267.50
Payment by annual direct debit - £255
Temporary overseas membership (for overseas visitors)
4 months’ duration - £267.50
Extra borrowing allowances
Additional 5 volumes - £46
Institutional Membership
Public libraries - £48 per volume
Educational/charitable institutions (10 or more staff/members)
Annual - £1,070
Additional 5 volumes - £138
Other institutions (10 or more staff/members)
Annual - £1,605
Additional 5 volumes - £230
Smaller institutions (Less than 10 staff/members)
Annual - £642
Additional 5 volumes - £92
Life Membership
Age 80 and over - £1,500
75 to 79 - £4.000
70 to 74 - £5,800
65 to 69 - £7,800
60 to 64 - £10,600
55 to 59 - £12,300
50 to 54 - £14,200
45 to 49 - £15,800
40 to 44 - £17,500
35 to 39 - £19,200
30 to 34 - £20,900
25 to 29 - £22,300
18 to 24 - £23,300
