Victor Willing

Victor Arthur James Willing (15 January 1928 – 1 June 1988) was a British painter, noted for his original nude studies.

He was a friend and colleague of many notable artists, including Elisabeth Frink, Michael Andrews and Francis Bacon.

He was married to Portuguese feminist artist Paula Rego.

Willing was born on 15 January 1928 in Alexandria, Egypt, the only son of George Willing, professional soldier, and his wife Irene Cynthia Tomkins.

The first four years of his life were spent there and, briefly, in Malta.

On returning to the UK his father was posted to various parts of southern England, including the Isle of Wight and Bordon, Hampshire.

Willing's education was, in consequence, disrupted until the family moved permanently to Guildford, Surrey, where he was able to attend The Royal Grammar School from 1940 to 1945.

A year was then spent at Guildford School of Art while he awaited call-up to National Service, which he performed from 1946 to 1948.

He secured a commission as second lieutenant in the Royal Artillery, serving in Northern Ireland and at Dover.

After this he was accepted by the Slade School of Fine Art, University of London, but only to start in 1949, so he returned for a year to Guildford Art School studying sculpture under Willi Soukop.

A fellow student and friend there at the time was Elisabeth Frink.

He produced two accomplished stone carvings during this year, a female torso and a head (private collections).

Willing's start at the Slade coincided with William Coldstream's arrival there as Director and Professor.

Fellow entrants that year included Michael Andrews, Henry Inlander and James Burr, while Euan Uglow, Craigie Aitchison, Paula Rego and Myles Murphy also overlapped subsequently.

Other close friends, Keith Sutton and Peter Snow, had started the previous year.

Willing was admired by his fellow students for his adventurous talent and intellectual zest, and was denoted 'spokesman for his generation' by the critic David Sylvester.

He was deeply fascinated by one of Francis Bacon's first exhibitions, in 1949, and he invited him to talk at the Slade.

In 1951, Willing had married his long-time Guildford girlfriend, Hazel Whittington; they lived first at Shalford near Guildford, and from 1954 in a large maisonette at Lancaster Gate in Bayswater, London.

He was able to paint both there and in a small studio that he had in Chelsea.

Meanwhile, he began an extra-marital affair with another student at the Slade named Paula Rego.

Rego had several abortions during their affair starting from when she was 18 years old, because Willing had threatened to return to his wife if Rego kept their child.

Willing took his diploma in 1952 and then stayed on for a further year.

Of work produced during these student years rather little survives.

Four paintings, Head of a Man (John Mills), Boy on a Tricycle (both private collection), Head of a Girl (Paula Rego) (Dumfriesshire Educational Trust) and Standing Nude (Tate Gallery) are still extant, however, and possibly two other 'summer compositions', Europa and the Bull and Musicians.

His diploma painting Act of Violence is still with University Art Collections, University College.

They subsequently became friends and saw a good deal of each other especially after Willing left the Slade in 1953.

Another artist who became a long-standing friend was Rodrigo Moynihan and each painted the other's portrait.

Willing's portrait of Moynihan is with the Royal College of Art, but Moynihan's of Willing was stolen and was, it is thought, destroyed by the thief.

An impressive Man Watching (a sentry standing in front of red railings), which was shown at the ICA in 1953, is believed lost.

There were also a few portraits: Andrew Forge, Natasha Spender and Lawrence Alloway (the last two, whereabouts unknown).

In 1955, Erica Brausen of the Hanover Gallery gave him a show which was a considerable critical success.

Paintings were bought by the Arts Council of Great Britain and also by Sir Colin Anderson, a notable supporter of young artists.

A star piece of the show, Reclining Nude, went to a Belgian purchaser and has disappeared from view.

Unfortunately there was no catalogue nor, it seems, were the exhibits photographed.

Paintings from around this time, which may have been in the exhibition, are Runners and Man Explaining (private collection) and Winter Machine (Arts Council Collection).

Man with a Kitten no longer exists but was published in monochrome.

In 1957, Rego left the UK to live in Portugal because she had decided to keep their latest baby.

After the birth of their daughter Caroline, Willing joined her there.

Rego's parents were supportive, and the two were able to live quietly at the family quinta in Ericeira where they both continued to paint.

They were married in 1959 following Willing's divorce from Hazel Whittington.