Browse & Darby

This Cork Street gallery was founded in 1945 by Henry (Heinz) Roland, Lillian Browse and Gustav Delbanco, tending to specialise in Expressionist-style figurative paintings and traded under the name of Roland, Browse & Delbanco, arguably one of the most famous names in British post-war art dealing. Gradually the refugee partners died firstly Roland in 1993 then Delanco in 1997. However they had both retired somewhat earlier and in 1977 Lilian Browse went into partnership with William Darby in the same Cork Street premises. Lilian Browse remained a director until 1981 and even though she died in aged 99 in 2005 the gallery still trades as Browse & Darby.

Among the lengthy catalogue of artists whom the gallery helped to establish were Bernard Dunstan, Henryk Gotlib, Zdzislaw Ruskowski, Josef Herman, Keith Grant, Prunella Clough, Brian Selway, Phillip Sutton and Anthony Whishaw. The gallery was re-opened as Browse & Darby in 1977.