The Intruder
Details
Beatrice, Lady Glenavy, R.H.A. (1883-1968)
The Intruder
signed with a monogram (lower right), inscribed 'The Intruder Beatrice Elvery (Lady Glenavy) Clonard Kimmage Road Terenure Dublin' (on a label on the reverse) oil on canvas
28 x 38in. (71.1 x 96.5cm)
The Intruder
signed with a monogram (lower right), inscribed 'The Intruder Beatrice Elvery (Lady Glenavy) Clonard Kimmage Road Terenure Dublin' (on a label on the reverse) oil on canvas
28 x 38in. (71.1 x 96.5cm)
Provenance
Professor Fearon, by whom acquired direct from the artist, thence by family descent.
Literature
Lady Glenavy, Today we will only gossip, London, 1964.
Exhibited
Dublin, Aonach Tailteann Exhibition of Irish Art, 1932, no.133.
Dublin, Royal Hibernian Academy, 1932, no.37.
London, Royal Academy, 1933, no.12.
Dublin, Waddington Gallery, 1955.
Dublin, National Gallery of Ireland, Irish Women Artists From the Eighteenth Century to the Present Day, 1987, no.112, p.133 (illustrated): this exhibition travelled to Trinity College, Douglas Hyde Gallery; and Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery of Modern Art.
Dublin, Royal Hibernian Academy, 1932, no.37.
London, Royal Academy, 1933, no.12.
Dublin, Waddington Gallery, 1955.
Dublin, National Gallery of Ireland, Irish Women Artists From the Eighteenth Century to the Present Day, 1987, no.112, p.133 (illustrated): this exhibition travelled to Trinity College, Douglas Hyde Gallery; and Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery of Modern Art.
Further details
'Described by The Irish Times in 1932 as 'reminiscent of an 18th century French theme, in which a golden-haired female centaur startles a picnic and bathing party beneath formalized foliage', this unusually large and richly coloured painting for the artist is more reminiscent of Rex Whistler's satirical mural, In Pursuit of Rare Meats, executed in the Restaurant of the Tate Gallery in London (1926-27).
The artist wrote in her autobiography, 'I painted a picture which I liked very much, called 'The Intruder'. It portrayed an imaginary woodland scene with people having a picnic; a female centaur has galloped through the wood and beckons to a young man in the picnic party who is leaping madly forward to follow her ... Richard Orpen ... was keen that my picture should be bought by the Haverty Trust ... Unfortunately some of the members of the committee considered that it was 'obscene' so they did not buy it. My meaning, if any, had been that the unknown was more interesting than the known. Next year I sent the picture to the R.A., where it was hung on the line, got good notices, and was caricatured by George Morrow in Punch under the title 'The Home Wrecker''.
The Intruder incorporates a number of themes the artist had used and would continue to explore in her work'. (N. Gordon Bowe, Irish Women Artists, National Gallery of Ireland Exhibition Catalogue, 1987, pp.133-34)
The artist wrote in her autobiography, 'I painted a picture which I liked very much, called 'The Intruder'. It portrayed an imaginary woodland scene with people having a picnic; a female centaur has galloped through the wood and beckons to a young man in the picnic party who is leaping madly forward to follow her ... Richard Orpen ... was keen that my picture should be bought by the Haverty Trust ... Unfortunately some of the members of the committee considered that it was 'obscene' so they did not buy it. My meaning, if any, had been that the unknown was more interesting than the known. Next year I sent the picture to the R.A., where it was hung on the line, got good notices, and was caricatured by George Morrow in Punch under the title 'The Home Wrecker''.
The Intruder incorporates a number of themes the artist had used and would continue to explore in her work'. (N. Gordon Bowe, Irish Women Artists, National Gallery of Ireland Exhibition Catalogue, 1987, pp.133-34)