Bell, Julian
(London 1908-1937 Brunete bei Madrid) : Maler, Dichter, Kunstkritiker, Neffe von Virginia Woolf
Name Alternative(s)
Bell, Julian Heward
Subjects
Art : General
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Index of Names : Occident
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Literature : Occident : Great Britain
Chronology Entries (5)
| # | Year | Text | Linked Data |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1935-1937 |
Julian Bell ist Professor of English an der Wuhan-Universität. (Oct. 1935-Jan. 1937). Julian Bell learned some Chinese, appreciated the langscapes and cities of China, and entered into the challenge of outdoors physical life as he did in China. He sailed the boat made for him in China across the beautiful lake near the Wohan campus, and enjoyed shooting in the wilds of Tibet. . When Julian Bell introduces To the lighthouse by Virginia Woolf in English to his Chinese students, translations already exist in Chinese. In the 1930's, there are translations of A room of one's own and Flush, and Julian writes to Virginia Woolf that 'China's leading women writer, my Dean's wife [Ling Shuhua] with whom I'm platonically in love is a passionate admirer of your work'. Julian Bell stayed in Wuhan with a whiff of scandal, having brought Bloomsbury to China in a mercurial affair with Ling Shuhua. Chen Yuan had forbidden him to write or see Shuhua after they were discovered. Julian took the risk of inviting her to join him in Beijing and then to wend their way down to Guangzhou for the Wester new year, January 1937. |
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| 2 | 1935-1937 |
Letters from Virginia Woolf. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Vanessa Bell ; 17 July, 1935. I was just sitting down to write to you last nicht when Julian [Bell] came in to say that he has got the Chinese professorship. You will have heard from him already. He seemed very excited, though also rather alarmed at the prospect. I wish it weren't for so long – though he says he can come back after a year. Still I suppose it's a great chance, and means that he will easily get something in England afterwards. Leonard thinks it an extraordinarily interesting job as it will mean being in the thick of Chinese politics, and Julian also felt this – what it means Chinese politics, I don’t know, nor I suppose to you. We had a long talk, and he was very charming and said that he felt it was time he made a complete break. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Julian Bell ; 14 Oct., 1935. We are all well in health, and spry in spirit ; but rather miss you, and I wish Q. wasn't going up to the potteries, however I rather suspect we shall make a push and come to China. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Julian Bell ; 25 Oct., 1935. Then Leonard heard from Tyrrell, whom you had also charmed. And now you are in your official residence on the banks of the Yangtse. Its useless to ask what youre doing at the moment much though I want o know. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Julian Bell ; 1st Dec., 1935. P.M. We have just been to the Chinese show, about which I don’t expect you want information… Letter from Vanessa Bell to Julian Bell ; 7 Dec. 1935. [About the first International Chinese exhibition of Art, Burlington House, London]. All London has gone Chinese… all the great dresses are going to be Chinese and no one talks of anything but Chinese art. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Lady Ottoline Morrell ; 5 Jan., 1936. We shall be back at the end of the week I think, and then I must go to the Chinese again – my one visit was as usual ruined by trying to dodge old friends (not you). And I'ver just been reading about the Chinese in some letters of Rogers [Fry] – he did all his off hand art criticism in letters, and I think its sometimes better than the printed – so fertile, so suggestive. [Exhibition of Chinese Art, The Royal Academy]. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Julian Bell ; 2 May, 1936. I feel instinctively that China is a little like a blue pot ; love a little flowery ; leaning a little scented. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Julian Bell ; 31 May 1936. [Julian Bell wrote to Virginia Woolf he wished he were in Sichuan or Peiping.] I hope now you are not dismal ; still it's a curse, your being so far away and then expect the mitigated culture of your university is rather like skimmed milk… In fact I think you are much to be envied. I wish I had spent three years in China at your age… Letter from Virginia Woolf to Julian Bell ; 14 Nov., 1936. Charles [Mauron] dined with us last night, and talked about you. He says for Gods sage don't leave China and come to fight in France – in Which I think he is right ; but no doubt he has said so already… Yes – tell me, what your amorous entanglements are ? I swear I wont reveal them. What about the Chinese ladies ? Are you wanting to come home ? What about a book on China ? We're having a bad season ; no one buys fiction… A Chinese evelope is a very nice sight, even though your pen is – well, a great black spider. Letter from Virginia Woolf to Vanessa Bell ; Saturday Oct., 1937. Thank you for sending [Richard] Rees' letter. It gives me the feeling I had when Julian came back from China… |
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| 3 | 1935-1936 |
Bell, Julian. Letters from China. 1935 Letter from Julian Bell to Marie Mauron ;1935. Really, I am falling a bit in love with China – also, platonically, yes, I assure you (for particular reasons, social and so on) with a Chinese woman [Ling Shuhua]. She is charming – the wife of the dean [Chen Yuan] of the Faculty of Letters, a highly intelligent and amiable man, one of Goldie's [G. Lowes Dickinson] students. She's the dauthter of a mandarin, a painter and short story writer, one of the most famous in China. She's sensitive and delicate, intelligent, cultivated, a little malicious, loving those gossipy stories, etc., that are true about everyone, very gay – in short, one of the nicest and most remarkable women I know. Letter from Julian Bell to Virginia Woolf ; Fall 1935. It's lovely country and the Chinese are charming ; lecturing on the moderns, 1890-1914 ; 1914-36. I have to read the writers ; what is one to do : we all write too much ; I shall make the Lighthouse I think, a set book. Letter from Julian Bell to Vanessa Bell ; 23 Oct., 1935. Hsu Hwa [Ling Shuhua] is an intelligent and sensitive angel. Can you imagine someone quite unaffected, very sensitive, extremely good and kind, with a sense of humour and firm hands with life ; she's darling. She comes to my Shakespeare and Modern lectures, which has the good effect of making me lecture my best : when I'm with the students I sometimes don'trouble, or treat them as schoolboys. Letter from Julian Bell to Vanessa Bell ; 22 Nov. 1935. Oh Nessa dear, you will have to meet her [Ling Shuhua] one of these days. She's the most charming creature I've met, and the only woman I know whou would be a possible daughter-in-law to you (she isn't, being married with a charming child and ten years too old) that she is really in our world and one of the most gifted, the nicest, most sensitive and intelligent people in it. I don't know what will happen. I think when I'm cured I shall probably get her involved : at present I'm not physically disturbed – less by her than others – but I know myself well enough to know that the parade follows the fla, etc. Letter from Julian Bell to Vanessa Bell ; 18 Dec. 1935. She's [Ling Shuhua] a desperately serious person, with great reserves of unhappiness : she says she's lost faith in everything, and is now working to find love, something to believe in. She's subtle, sensitive, very complicated – also torn between an introspective – analytic part and a very fragile easily-damaged sensibility. And sensible and intelligent. And also very romantic at heart. And, I should imagine, nervously and ecstatically passionate. She wouldn't let me make love to her to any extent at all last night. And she looks lovely… And inexperienced in love. Letter from Julian Bell to Eddy Playfair ; 27 Dec. 1935. She's [Ling Shuhua] very shy, verbally and physically. It's my oddest affair to date. She's as intense and passionate as your old enemy Helen [Soutar] is also a selftorturer and pessimist asking reassurance. And both jealous and not wanting to lose face. On the other hand, intelligent, charming ,sensitive, passionate and a malicious storyteller. And a perfect adviser on social situations : she's saved me gaffes innumerable. Letter from Julian Bell to Vanessa Bell ; 1 Febr. 1936. Our day in the Western Hills spent lookg at temples. Some of them are very lovely, beautifully proportioned courts of white marble : lots of bas-relief that seems to me decent decoration, and some good statues. There's a colossal sleeping Bhudda in a sort of copper-gold who I fancy distinguished statesmen sen him presents of colossal slippers. Then, as you'll see from the photos, we climbed a small mountain. I really lost my heart to the Western Hills… I really could live very happily in Peking. But I think I prefer Charleston. Letter from Julian Bell to Eddy Playfair ; Febr. 1936. In Sichuan there's no real culture – even faintly foreign society. And the Chinese are, I fell very different, if one wants intimacy of intellectual conversation. At least these rather stiff and provincial academics are. Peiping is utterly different ; these are genuine flexible Chinese, come intelligent foreigners mix with them. Letter from Julian Bell to Virginia Woolf ; Fall 1936. China's leading woman writer, my Dean's wife with whom I'm platonically in love is a passionate admirer of your work. |
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| 4 | 1936 |
Letter from Julian Bell to Virginia Woolf.; Wuhan University (1936). It's lovely country and the Chinese are charming ; lecturing on the Moderns, 1890-1914 ; 1914-36. I have to read the writers ; what is one to do ; we all write too much ; I shall make the Lighthouse I think, a set book. |
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| 5 | 1936 | Expedition von Derek Bryan, Julian Bell, Ye Junjian und Jack B. Hanson Lowe von West Sichuan nach Tibet. |
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Bibliography (1)
| # | Year | Bibliographical Data | Type / Abbreviation | Linked Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1938 |
Bell, Julian. China diary. In : The papers of Julian Heward Bell. Cambridge University, King's College Archive Centre. http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/a2a/records.aspx?cat=272-bell&cid=-1#-1. |
Publication / Woolf35 |
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Secondary Literature (2)
| # | Year | Bibliographical Data | Type / Abbreviation | Linked Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1997 |
Laurence, Patricia. The China letters : Julian Bell, Vanessa Bell, and Ling Shu Hua. In : South Carolina review ; Spring (1997). [Betr. auch Virginia Woolf]. http://www.clemson.edu/cedp/cudp/scr/articles/scr_29-1_laurence.pdf. |
Publication / Woolf8 | |
| 2 | 2003 | Laurence, Patricia. Lily Briscoe's Chinese eyes : Bloomsbury, modernism, and China. (Columbia, S.C. : University of South Carolina Press, 2003). [Betr. Virginia Woolf, Ling Shuhua, Julian Bell]. | Publication / Woolf3 |
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