When Matthew Smith announced that he wanted to be a painter, his father was appalled. A straitlaced manufacturer who wanted Matthew in the family's wire-making business, old Mr. Smith finally gave in, on one condition: his son was not to paint any nudes. Matthew Smith thereupon proceeded to paint more and better nudes than anyone else in Britain. Painter Smith, now 73, has long been considered by a circle of admirers, including famed Augustus John, as Britain's best contemporary artist. Last week Smith was honored by one of the Tate Gallery's rare one-man...
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