Zum Zeitvertreib. Vom Lesen und Malen

by Winston S. Churchill, Claus Sprick (Translator)

Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) war einer der bedeutendsten Staatsmänner des 20. Jahrhunderts. Aber er war auch ein Universalgelehrter, dessen historische Werke ihm den Nobelpreis für Literatur einbrachten. In diesem kleinen Band ist er als eigensinniger und sehr persönlicher Essayist zu entdecken, der über zwei seiner Lieblingshobbys schreibt - das Lesen und das Malen. Ein Leben ohne Bücher war für Churchill undenkbar, aber das Lesen war für ihn kein Mittel zum Zweck, er vertrat die Auffassung, man solle sich dabei allein von seiner Lust und Laune lenken lassen. In der Malerei fand Churchill, der erst mit vierzig Jahren zu Pinsel und Palette griff, Trost und Stärkung. Er hatte seine eigene Welt gefunden, fernab vom Druck, dem er als Person des öffentlichen Lebens ausgesetzt war, eine Welt, von der er sagte: "Glücklich sind die Maler, denn sie sind niemals einsam".

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Memoir, History, Philosophy, Biography, Essays

64 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1948

About the author

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, politician and writer, as prime minister from 1940 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1955 led Great Britain, published several works, including The Second World War from 1948 to 1953, and then won the Nobel Prize for literature.

William Maxwell Aitken, first baron Beaverbrook, held many cabinet positions during the 1940s as a confidant of Churchill.

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC (Can), served the United Kingdom again. A noted statesman, orator and strategist, Churchill also served as an officer in the Army. This prolific author "for his mastery of historical and biographical description as well as for brilliant oratory in defending exalted human values."

Out of respect for Winston_Churchill, the well-known American author, Winston S. Churchill offered to use his middle initial as an author.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston...

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lovely little book by statesman and author Winston Churchill about why he took up painting in middle age. I love this passage:

"To be really happy and really safe, one ought to have at least two or three hobbies...

Broadly speaking, human beings may be divided into three classes: those who are toiled to death, those who are worried to death, and those who are bored to death. It is no use offering the manual labourer, tired out with a hard week's sweat and effort, the chance of playing a game of football or baseball on Saturday afternoon. It is no use inviting the politician or the professional or business man, who has been working or worrying about serious things for six days, to work or worry about trifling things at the week-end.

"As for the unfortunate people who can command everything they want, who can gratify every caprice and lay their hands on almost every objet of desire -- for them, a new pleasure, a new excitement is only an additional satiation. In vain they rush frantically round from place to place, trying to escape from avenging boredom by mere clatter and motion. For them discipline in one form or another is the most hopeful path."

Churchill goes on to explain why painting was just the hobby for him, someone whose job it was to be "worried to death."

A lovely little book, worth reading both for its advice and for its insight into the mind of a great man.

P.S. If you ever get a chance to see an exhibit of Churchill's paintings, you'll see that he was quite good at it.

[Bill on GR Sabbatical · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a charming little book by the future prime minister, written during his wilderness years out of government in the 1930s. Churchill advocates that painting is an ideal hobby of the sort a "brain-worker" should pursue in whatever leisure time is available, because the focused attention of eye and hand forestalls worry about the problems of work and provides other benefits, such as improving observational skills and memory. The second half relates his own artistic journey, begun in his 40s, filled with interesting anecdotes of painting and museum visits on his travels, followed by 18 color plates of some of his work. I wasn't as taken with the landscapes, but liked his architectural paintings, particularly 'The Tapestries at Blenheim Palace", only partly because I've visited the room depicted.

[Haleigh DeRocher · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Happy are the painters, for they shall not be lonely."

Painting as a Pastime by Winston Churchill has been one of my favorite reads of the year. It's a very short book and an absolute gem. And before you write it off because you're "not an artist", wait!

This book is for everyone. Winston Churchill - the great Prime Minister, statesman, soldier - took up painting as a hobby in his later years, to relieve stress and find joy. He argues that painting is a pursuit that anyone can do and everyone can benefit from, and "after all, if you try, and fail, there is not much harm done".

Winston Churchill was a fantastic painter, but he happily admits that he didn't know what he was doing when he began. "I do not presume to explain how to paint, but only how to get enjoyment." He took a "joy ride in a paint-box" and this is his Ode.

If you read this book, you might just find yourself picking up a paintbrush yourself, and I highly recommend it (both the reading and the painting) 🥰

Loved everything about this little book. Will be one I return to again and again.

[Francisco · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I tell you about this little book? I read it because I wanted to see the connection between integrity and courage in the public life and leisure and enjoyment in the private life. What if the ability to enjoy being alone and playing with colors helped him, and could help us, to be good and brave? And what was it about the concentrated observation that painting required that could make a man see all of reality, the good and evil, more clearly? What if you had something in your life that you did for the sake of doing, and if the poplar ended up looking more like a steeple, so be it. What happens to you when the blank canvas or the blank page is seen as an invitation to come out and play, just as we are - not Picasso, or Faulkner, but Churchill, and plain, ordinary me and you. What builds up in you, strong and solid, in those hours of fun and play that can then withstand what the world throws at you? No, not withstand, because that requires some effort. More like the strength from care free play is just there, found in you, as if it had been there from the beginning. To say that his hundreds of paintings are good or not so good is to miss the point. It is the "pastime" in the paintings before you that is edifying, that inspires. Maybe he got up from the canvas and headed off to meet Stalin or Roosevelt or Hitler and the mindset gathered and re-discovered in the hours of pastime was still there, somehow, now transformed into a vision of a world filled with peace and beauty.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Happy are the painters, for they shall not be lonely. Light and colour, peace and hope, will keep them company to the end, or almost to the end, of the day (p. 13)

My mother gave me Winston Churchill's essay/book, Painting as a Pastime, for my birthday. It is a yellowed, used book and an old-fashioned cover. It is dusty (one of the things I like about Kindle books is that they don't bother my respiratory system). It is actually the edition in this photo, which I hadn't expected to find on GR.

I'm not sure why my mother gave me this book. Because she thinks I work too much and should develop more pastimes? Because she knows I love memoir and also art? Because we were talking about Churchill earlier this year, she reading Clementine, me watching The Crown? Maybe all of these, as life is often multiply-determined. I liked seeing Churchill from a different perspective and, sometimes, re-envisioning myself.

Churchill observed that we are encouraged to do all sorts of things to prevent worry and mental overstrain (p. 7). He argues that what makes pastimes of any sort effective is that we are doing something different than usual and, in fact, the typical faculties of our brain are both rested and strengthened by doing something different (not just doing nothing, which doesn't stop us from thinking). Both people whose work is work and their play play; and those whose work is play, need an alternative outlook, of a change of atmosphere, of a diversion of effort (p. 10). Perhaps, he argues, this is especially important for people like him (and me), people whose work is absorbing and satisfying.

Churchill sees painting as having all sorts of advantages. Stepping off our typical path opens our eyes to different ways of seeing and approaching the world. He saw more, he remembered more vividly. He saw himself differently.

Painting as a Pastime ended with eighteen prints of his paintings. Churchill was not a great artist (or the colors in my edition have faded), but a surprisingly good one.

It's rewarding to discover a different view of someone you thought you knew.

[GoldGato · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the benefits of being a collector of printed books is the opportunity to own a treasure such as this. It's slight and will be squeezed by heavier tomes, much as a tiny home between two office buildings. But the joy of life that is inside the pages is more than enough to make it special.

Mr. Churchill has brought a smile to my face many a time via his writings. Here he states his wonder at being able to pick up a paintbrush as one of his pursuits (along with others, such as saving the world). There are also colour plates of Churchill's paintings, with his blues and purples especially vibrant. As someone who has difficulty drawing a circle, I admire anyone with an artistic soul.

Happy are the painters, for they shall not be lonely.

This is also a nice book for a corporate wake-up call, as Churchill broaches the subject of workaholics and the need to have other hobbies to keep the mind engaged but away from the daily grind.



My crayons are waiting for me.

Book Season = Year Round (nature as shimmering light)

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the 1965 edition I have, thirty two pages of Painting as a Pastime are from Winston Churchill's pen. The other pages are from his brush, images of his paintings, which are pretty competent, and are what I'd say are close to the Bloomsbury School. This is a great little book by a great mind. I broke into a smile a lot reading Painting as a Pastime. Churchill approached painting as he would a battle. I don't mean he will 'paint them on the beaches'. He states "One begins to see, for instance, that painting a picture is like fighting a battle; and trying to paint a picture is, I suppose, like trying fight a battle. It is, if anything, more exciting than fighting it successfully. But the principle is the same". And nobody gets hurt. If only armies faced off with easels instead of weapons.

Churchill's personal nature had him half way there to being a good painter before he ever started picking up the brushes. Ol' Winston instinctively knew one thing, be decisive with that brush, be confident and stand your ground and don't give up.

Painting as a Pastime is eloquently and elegantly written, and in a positive spirit.

[Grace Gerardot · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up on my trip to Blendheim and read it that night. Though I’m not sure me and Churchill think the same way about art what with his impressionistic outlook, his ideas are interesting and thought out and great fun to mull over, such as his outlook on reading in another language or how you should acquaint yourself with your books. I quite enjoyed my little stroll through the thoughts of Winston Churchill and liked him thoroughly. The book was certainly never dull and I walked away with a great deal more then i entered it with, as well as a respect for unpopular opinions. Highly recommend.

[Samuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delightful little book! Read it on a sunny Sunday afternoon and be inspired to “Audacity” as he describes it, and the joys of humility, finitude, and the small pleasures in life.

[mooma · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 tähteä ainakin. Hupsu pieni kirja maalaamisesta, mut viihdyin. Etenkin kirjoitukset lukemisesta ja kirjoista resonoi.

[PJ Wenzel · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite little books of the year. As soon as I finished it I started reading it again, looking for my favorite turns of phrases. There is more passion in one of Churchill’s sentences than in whole chapters of others’ writing.

[Carrie Brownell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful little book full of wit and wisdom on the joys of creating and maintaining hobbies to keep the brain active and the joy for life alive!

[Andrew Carr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hesitate to list this short tome as a book read, but it is a powerful meditation on one of life's most significant topics from one of the greatest writers of the 20th century.

Churchill's staggering influence often makes him seem a remote figure, and modern tellings of his life too often deify his actions. But reading this book you'll hear his real voice. Afraid of being mocked, worried about what comes next, exhausted from his struggles, yet still passionate to keep pushing on and seeking to suck more from the marrow of life. There are many gorgeous phrases in this book. As an inveterate scribbler in the margins I wanted to mark them all, and yet felt the pull of the pen to hold back and leave the text untouched so others can enjoy this book in its pure form.

The text ostensibly is about Churchill's late in life discovery of painting as a pastime. But why this book exists, and why so many non-painters have recommended it, is because it is really about how to manage a career where your passion and profession are the same. That may seem like an indulgent challenge when so many work jobs they can't stand and are lectured nightly to 'just follow your passion'. But it's a real issue.

As Winston notes early on, strain the mind in one direction during the day and without some form of adequate rest (which neither booze nor unconsciousness can quite fill) and it won't quite rebound in the right way the next day. Churchill discovered that at much greater pressure at 40. At 31 I feel I also have. I love my job and life, without question, but I feel I need some outlet to regularly reset beyond what I have access to. Whether painting is quite right for me I'm not sure. But that there needs to be something -having read this book- I feel no doubt is right.

I remember soon after beginning full time work asking my friends 'What do you do each night?'. It was a genuine question. Of the mere precious few hours between coming home (5-6) and the necessary movement towards sleep (9-10), there are only so few things that can be done, so little distance put between you and the things you flee. But regardless of the verdict of the previous day you need to accept that deadline, move willingly towards unconsciousness and prepare for another vault into the forge. When thought of this way, the entire process is utterly bizzare, and even a few days eaked out over short holidays or long weekends makes little more sense.

What exactly then do you do during this time? What helps escape the past, salve the return and make meaningful the space inbetween? These are some of the most important and unasked and unanswered questions of our time. This is the rare book which tries to go beyond the utilitarian ideal and talk to this vital topic. For that reason it goes straight to my must read and most treasured pile.

[Rick Shrader]

I have owned this book for a while but was reminded of it in reading a graduation speech. We usually don’t think of Winston Churchill in any field but politics and war. Yet a little known fact is that he was an avid painter, not beginning the hobby until forty years of age, but continuing the rest of his life. In all he painted over 500 canvases, many of which were exhibited at the British Royal Academy. The book is full of quotable sayings (“Nothing makes a man more reverent than a library”). Here is Churchill’s own reason why a person needs a hobby like painting,
“Change is the master key. A man can wear out a particular part of his mind by continually using it and tiring it, just in the same way as he can wear out the elbows of his coat. There is, however, this difference between the living cells of the brain and inanimate articles: one cannot mend the frayed elbows of a coat by rubbing the sleeves or shoulders; but the tired parts of the mind can be rested and strengthened, mot merely by rest, but by using other parts. It is not enough merely to switch off the lights which play upon the main ordinary field of interest; a new field of interest must be illuminated. It is no use saying to the tired ‘mental muscles’—if one may coin such an expression—‘I will give you a good rest,’ ‘I will go for a long walk,’ or ‘I will lie down and think of nothing.’ The mind keeps busy just the same. If it has been weighing and measuring, it goes on weighing and measuring. If it has been worrying, it goes on worrying. It is only when new cells are called into activity, when new stars become the lords of the ascendant, that relief, repose, refreshment are afforded.”

[Mike Stokes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had no idea I would enjoy this book as much as I did.

There are many sides to Winnie. At 40 years old and receiving a demotion from his position as First Lord of the Admiralty due to blame for his role in the Dardanelles campaign, Churchill resigned from government and found himself lost and rudderless.

Churchill credits the Muse of Painting with coming to his rescue and helping him overcome his anxiety and depression. Despite his late introduction to painting, Churchill became an impressive painter, at least by my standards and produced over 550 paintings throughout the rest of his life. Painting along with writing were two of his steadfast companions.

Churchill says "A man can wear out a particular part of his mind by continuously using it and tiring it, just in the same way as he can wear out the elbows of his coat." I think all of us would be better off by engaging our minds in active leisure through the pursuit of some active crafts like painting, carving, writing, black smithing etc.

This is my first book I've read from Winston Churchill and I really enjoyed his prose style and found he writes with a lot of passion.

Interesting to see all the different diversions Churchill could have bided his time with yet attacked painting with zest.

[Camilla · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a pretty charming essay about the delights of painting as a hobby, with the desire to achieve your personal best but no illusions of grandeur. We'll ignore the shade about watercolors. It would be a fun little read for painters and I'm glad I came across it in the staff picks at my library, but I could have lived without it. We all know we need a hobby or two to avoid going insane. Obviously I didn't expect it to get too personal, as it's written by renowned war criminal Winston Churchill, but I do think it would have been much more charming if he'd opened up a bit more. As it is it's mostly little aphorisms and quips about painting and about his own joyful ineptitude at the art. The best thing in the essay was his insistence that coming into painting as an older person might even bring you more joy than as a young person learning carefully to become one of the Greats™, as perfectionism is a reason I, and other adults I think, avoid trying new things. Overall I wasn't wowed by its content or its charm, but I smiled and it made me want to pick up my brush.

[Nora · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and delightful read that has inspired me to pick up my paints and, interestingly enough, to read more in French. My favourite quote from the book comes at the beginning when he's talking about reading as a pastime and the benefits of learning a second language though, as he explains, not too many: "The boy learns enough Latin to detest it; enough Greek to pass an examination; enough French to get from Calais to Paris; enough German to exhibit a diploma; enough Spanish or Italian to tell which is which; but not enough of any to secure the enormous boon of access to a second literature. Choose well, choose wisely, and choose one". I love that idea of "access to a second literature".

[Timothy Neesam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Churchill’s slim book (really a long essay) about the joy of discovering painting late in life resonates with me, a little old man who, paintbrush in hand, suddenly feels like a kid with a new toy.

Churchill takes us through the many good things painting helps us emotionally and physically, and the book comes into its own when he describes how much he loves colour and how discovering painting changed how he looks at the world. The book brims with love and enthusiasm, and it’s hard not to smile as he describes his pleasure, which, as it’s Churchill, is sometimes described in military terms, as he attacks his canvases tentatively and then with gusto. This is a book to return to and I’m delighted to have read it (and all the more fun if you read it with Churchill's voice narrating in your head).

[Alexander Oleksyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book feels like the kind of reading we would analyse in AP Lang, but it's much more enjoyable when you don't have to write a timed essay afterward.
I didn't agree with everything Churchill had to say, but it's clear that he is writing with passion.

[Roni · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Painting is a companion with whom one may hope to walk a great part of life’s journey, ‘age cannot wither her nor custom stale her infinite variety.’”

“Happy are the painters, for they shall not be lonely.”

[Abel Manley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Very short and easy read that anyone can finish in an hour (except for Ben). Interesting to read the ideas and perspective of Churchill and how he coped with the stress of leading a country during WWII.

[Jonah · Rating 5 out of 5]

“What shall I do with all my books?' was the question; and the answer, 'Read them,' sobered the questioner. But if you cannot read them, at any rate handle them and, as it were, fondle them. Peer into them. Let them fall open where they will. Read on from the first sentence that arrests the eye. Then turn to another. Make a voyage of discovery, taking soundings of uncharted seas. Set them back on their shelves with your own hands. Arrange them on your own plan, so that if you do not know what is in them, you at least know where they are. If they cannot be your friends, let them at any rate be your acquaintances.”

[Amelia Horton · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5
Such a charming little book with the sweetest tidbits about life and art 🌱🌱🌱🌱

[Abi Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Winston Churchill, I wasn't familiar with your game

[julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars.

Very well written and argued, so much so that I feel like I should give painting another go, even though I know I have no talent at all for it and will be frustrated with the outcome. Churchill is a very convincing man on paper, just as I would imagine him to have been during his lifetime, in person.

[Chloe Lawrence · Rating 3 out of 5]

A refreshing read from Churchill

[Christabel]

It's a delightful short read, imploring one to cultivate at least two to three hobbies. "To restore psychic equilibrium we should call into use those parts of the mind which direct both eye and hand" - so look beyond reading, he suggests.

I'm often overwhelmed by the number of books I want to read, knowing I'll probably never be able to get down to many of them. These words from Churchill were so comforting:

"'What shall I do with all my books?' was the question; and the answer, 'Read them,' sobered the questioner. But if you cannot read them, at any rate handle them and, as it were, fondle them. Peer into them. Let them fall open where they will. Read on from the first sentence that arrests the eye. Then turn to another. Make a voyage of discovery, taking soundings of uncharted seas. Set them back on their shelves with your own hands. Arrange them on your own plan, so that if you do not know what is in them, you at least know where they are. If they cannot be your friends, let them at any rate be your acquaintances. If they cannot enter the circle of your life, do not deny them at least a nod of recognition."

What a master wordsmith. Thoroughly enjoyed the read. It's only my first of anything by Churchill and I intend to soak in more.

[C.S. Boag · Rating 4 out of 5]

He not only saved us from Hitler but he could both write and paint.
There's a lot of encouragement in this little book for the sometime, late-starting artist. Churchill himself started in 1915 when he found himself temporarily out of a job. It gave his restless mind something to do and he found he could do it.
The book is full of advise for busy people, for older people particularly
" .... if... you are inclined-late in life though it be- to reconnoitre a a foreign sphere of limitless extent, then be persuaded that the first quality that is needed is Audacity..."
In other words, jump in the deep end-just do it. Be brave, be foolhardy, if you like.
No one will get killed. Have fun. And, who knows, you might produce a work of art ot two- as Churchill did. Inspirational.

[Jeanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simplest book to read, that I am aware of, to push you towards living. Chock full of descriptive cues to grasp, while loving to squeeze tubes of color, spread by breath and turpentine or water, depending on the medium you choose to divulge your senses. Find an hour and immerse yourself into this book. Live!

[Marjorie Elwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lovely essay in book form - what a writer he was! Churchill explains how he took up painting in later life, in order to distract himself from the worries of his career. He is humble and charming and completely enamored with painting. The second half of the book is devoted to reproductions of some of his paintings.