Anita Brookner facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Anita Brookner
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| Born | 7 August Expression error: Unrecognized word "ner". Herne Hill, London, England |
| Died | 10 March 2016 (aged 87) London, England |
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| Alma mater | King's College London |
| Period | 1981–2011 |
| Genre | Drama |
| Notable work | Hotel du Lac |
Anita Brookner (born 16 July 1928 – died 10 March 2016) was a talented English writer and an expert in art history. She was the first woman to be a Slade Professor of Fine Art at the University of Cambridge from 1967 to 1968. She won a major award, the Booker–McConnell Prize, in 1984 for her book Hotel du Lac.
Life and Education
Anita Brookner was born in Herne Hill, a part of London. Her father, Newson Bruckner, was a Jewish immigrant from Poland. Her mother, Maude Schiska, was a singer. Maude changed the family's last name to Brookner because of strong anti-German feelings in Britain at the time.
Anita had a quiet childhood. Even though her grandmother and uncle lived with them, and her parents helped Jewish refugees during the 1930s and World War II, she often felt alone.
She went to James Allen's Girls' School, which was a private school. In 1949, she earned a degree in history from King's College London. Later, in 1953, she got a special degree called a doctorate in art history from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. She also received a scholarship to study in Paris and lived there for much of the 1950s.
Career
Academic Work
In 1967, Anita Brookner made history by becoming the first woman to hold the Slade Professorship of Fine Art at Cambridge University. Before that, she was a visiting teacher at Reading University from 1959 to 1964.
She then became a teacher at the Courtauld Institute of Art. She was promoted to a higher teaching position there in 1977 and worked until she retired in 1988. She started her career studying French art from the 1700s, but later she also became an expert on Romantic art. She wrote articles for ArtReview in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
One of her students at the Courtauld was the art historian Olivier Berggruen. Anita Brookner was also a special member (called a Fellow) of King's College London and New Hall, Cambridge.
As a Novelist
Anita Brookner published her first novel, A Start in Life, in 1981 when she was 53 years old. After that, she wrote about one book every year.
Her books are known for their special writing style. They often explore feelings of loneliness and the challenges people face when trying to fit in. Her characters are usually smart, middle-class women who sometimes feel a bit lonely or out of place. Many of her characters are children of European immigrants to Britain.
Her fourth novel, Hotel du Lac (1984), won the famous Booker–McConnell Prize.
Private Life and Honours
Anita Brookner never got married. She spent time taking care of her parents as they grew older.
In 1990, she was given a special honour called Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for her achievements.
She passed away in London on 10 March 2016, at the age of 87.
See also
In Spanish: Anita Brookner para niños
- Women in the art history field
