Nicholas Dimbleby
Nicholas Dimbleby (8 August 1946 – 10 February 2024) was a British sculptor.[1][2]
Early life and education
[edit]Dimbleby was born in Sussex, England, the third of four children to broadcaster Richard Dimbleby and his wife, Dilys (née Thomas).[3][4] He grew up on a farm and experienced mild dyslexia and acute astigmatism, which influenced his interest in sculpture.[3][5]
Dimbleby received his early education from Cranleigh School and later studied sculpture at Edinburgh College of Art and later attended Goldsmiths College.[3][4]
Career
[edit]Dimbleby began his career as an assistant to abstract sculptor William Pye in London.[3][4] After briefly living in rural France, he returned to the UK and established a studio in Devon, where he settled permanently.[3] He worked on public and private projects, including portraits of sports personalities such as rugby player Jonny Wilkinson and rower Steve Redgrave.[3] He also produced private commissions for the British royal family, including a lifecast of Lady Louise Windsor for her parents, Prince Edward and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, and several pieces commissioned by King Charles III when he was Prince of Wales.[3] He also created sculpture of Captain Cook on High Green, Great Ayton.[6]
Other major public sculptures by Dimbleby included a memorial for his father Richard Dimbleby, unveiled at Westminster Abbey in 1990, and a memorial commissioned by the Royal College of Physicians in 2022 honoring doctors who died during the COVID-19 pandemic, unveiled by Professor Sir Chris Whitty.[3]
Personal life
[edit]Dimbleby married Kay, a music teacher, in 1971.[4] The couple had four children and lived in a manor house in Clyst Hydon, Devon, initially co-owned with his brother Jonathan. Following his youngest daughter's leukemia diagnosis in 1990, his wife Kay shifted from teaching to textile and quilt design.[3]
Dimbleby was diagnosed with motor neurone disease later in life and died on 10 February 2024, aged 77.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ Runcie, Charlotte (November 22, 2023). "I know how cruel motor neurone disease can be – the Dimbleby interview is the most powerful thing I've heard" – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
- ^ Booth, Robert; correspondent, Robert Booth Social affairs (February 27, 2024). "'Increasingly unbearable': Jonathan Dimbleby criticises UK's law against assisted dying" – via The Guardian.
{{cite web}}:|last2=has generic name (help) - ^ a b c d e f g h i j Obituaries, Telegraph (February 25, 2024). "Nicholas Dimbleby, scion of the broadcasting dynasty who made his name as a sculptor – obituary" – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
- ^ a b c d Suart, Paul (February 20, 2024). "Loving tributes to sculptor who created Coventry's Jimmy Hill statue". Coventry Live.
- ^ "Nicholas Dimbleby". February 21, 2024.
- ^ "Sculptor behind young James Cook statue dies aged 77". Darlington and Stockton Times. February 26, 2024.