Beschreibung:

SUNBATHERS, 1936 Sir John Lavery RA RHA RSA (1856-1941)
Signature: signed lower left; Paris Salon label and inscribed labels of former owners on reverse Medium: oil on canvas Dimensions: 141 by 110cm., 55.5 by 43.5in. Provenance: Sir Patrick Ford, Bt, Edinburgh; Sotheby’s, Irish Sale, 21 May 1998, lot 343; Whence purchased by the present owners Exhibited: RA, London, 1937, catalogue no. 320; Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, 1937; Société des Artistes Français, Paris Salon, 1938 Literature: Anon, ‘The Summer Exhibition of the Royal Academy’, The Times, 1 May 1937, p. 20 (illustrated); Royal Academy Pictures 1937, Walter Judd Ltd, London, 1937, p. 80 (illustrated); Anon, ‘London Fashions – Portrait Studies at Burlington House’, The Times, 20 May 1937, p. 19; John Lavery The Life of a Painter, Cassell and Co., London, 1940, p. 246; Kenneth McConkey, Sir John Lavery Canongate, 1993, p. 200 (illustrated plate 239) After the deaths of his wife, Hazel and his daughter, Eileen in 1935, Lavery was persuaded by his granddaughter, Diana, to visit Hollywood. Enthralled by the movies, Diana, (1913-1960) ran off with Go... oldie Butner, a cowboy performer at the ‘Dude’ Ranch Wild West Show at Bliss, Oklahoma, but returned to London in time to plan the trip, which would include Lillian Millar, a model who had been working for Lavery.1 This unlikely trio set off the following year and after an abortive attempt to paint the frenetic activities of film-making at the MGM studios, Lavery repaired to “a most wonderful retreat” in Palm Springs, where he was the guest of Gordon and Gertrude Coutts. Lavery arrived in April when the heat was “excessive” and the light, so “blinding” that it “necessitated wearing smoked glasses the greater part of the day”.2 Undeterred, the painter embarked upon an ambitious project to paint sunbathers (fig. 1). Looking down on Lillian and Diana, Lavery faced the task of painting foreshortened figures. He originally included himself in the upper portion of the composition, engaged in painting a more orthodox view of the figures, the back of the villa and the Coutts’ daughter, Mary (fig. 2). The empty deckchair under the arcade in the background of this unlocated picture-within-the-picture marks the spot from which the present canvas was painted. The upper section of Sunbathers, in the present canvas, was later removed, probably in Lavery’s lifetime, and it has not been recovered.3 His shoes, which would have been visible about six inches from the top of the present canvas, have been painted out. Very slight adjustments also appear to have been made to the edges of the shadow of his white sketching umbrella, while all other details remain the same. It is probable that since the picture’s first owner was Lavery’s old friend and patron, Sir Patrick Ford, that the proposed reduction was by mutual consent. 4 None of these issues surfaced when the picture was first exhibited at the Royal Academy. The Times for instance was more preoccupied with the fact that Lavery had forsaken “the furs and rich fabrics” of his usual portraiture for “a more carefree attitude to dress”. The incongruity of Lillian’s spotted shorts and high-heeled red evening shoes was noted.5 At the time of the picture’s completion, Ford was involved in a Lavery exhibition at the Victoria Art Galleries of the Albert Institute in Dundee. In his Foreword to the catalogue Ford hailed Lavery as a “sound craftsman” and “genius”; … through the experiences of years he preserves the freshness and courage of youth. No new subject daunts him, and some of his most successful achievements have resulted from adventure into fresh woods and pastures new. 6 Whilst there were no “fresh woods” at Palm Springs in 1936, Sunbathers amply demonstrates that the eighty-year old painter still retained something of the freshness and courage of youth. Prof. Kenneth McConkey Northumberland, March 2007 1 Diana was the daughter of Eileen Lavery and James Dickinson, her first husband. It is clear that she hoped to be discovered as an actress. L