The 2022 exhibition Companions of the Brush brought the paintings of Paul Maze and Winston Churchill together at Blenheim Palace with letters, photographs, films and personal objects documenting their friendship.
The two men met during the First World War. Maze, a French-born anglophile who served with the Scots Greys, later became a close companion and artistic influence in Churchill’s life.
Painting as friendship and refuge
Churchill used painting as a private space for reflection during periods of political pressure and war. The exhibition challenged the tendency to dismiss his work as a casual hobby by showing the persistence and seriousness of his practice.
Maze painted alongside Churchill on several occasions and also depicted him at the easel. Their exchange extended beyond technique: the friendship provided emotional support during some of Churchill’s most difficult years.
The exhibition gathered examples of both artists’ work to show how shared activity sustained that relationship.
Recovering the work of a “lost Impressionist”
Maze’s paintings documented public life and historic events, including Armistice Day in Paris, royal ceremonies, Ascot, Henley and Cowes. His work entered collections including those of the royal family, the Tate and the Fitzwilliam Museum, yet his public reputation remained limited.
Curator Lizzie Collins developed the exhibition after encountering Maze’s work through her previous auction career. Blenheim Palace offered an appropriate setting because Churchill was born there and Maze had been a regular visitor.
Several works had not previously been shown publicly. Their presentation beside personal documents turned the exhibition into more than a double retrospective.
Companions of the Brush used painting to reveal a relationship in which art, friendship and historical experience had become inseparable.