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Lot Essay
This magnificent image of fading majesty and power is a rare example of Dicksee’s work in oil. The declining days of the proud and handsome lion, are reflected in the setting sun enflaming the horizon and creating a golden frame around the lion’s noble head held high in defiance against the vultures, already circling, but temporarily remaining at a respectful distance from their once formidable rival.
Primarily known for his etchings and mezzotint engravings, Herbert Dicksee was born in London in 1862 into an intensely artistic family. His grandfather had two sons, John Robert Dicksee, Herbert’s father, and Thomas Francis Dicksee, who were both artists, as was Thomas Francis’s son, the celebrated Victorian artist Sir Frank Dicksee, who was elected President of the Royal Academy in 1924. Frank Dicksee’s sister, Margaret, and Herbert’s sister, Amy, were both also successful painters.
At the age of sixteen Dicksee entered the Slade School of Art where he studied under Alphonse Legros, the distinguished painter, etcher and sculptor. While following strict instruction in drawing from life and from the antique, Dicksee also devoted much time to etching, which was keenly encouraged, with many of the students, including Dicksee, becoming members of the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers. During his five years’ course at the school, the young artist was successful in obtaining the Slade scholarship, in addition to several medals.
His love for animals developed during his time at the Slade. Living at 6 Fitzroy Square, he could rise early in the morning to visit the Zoological Gardens close by in Regents Park, before any visitors arrived, and could be found sketching the lions and tigers as they moved around their enclosure. The subject of the present painting is thought to have been a lion called Punch who appears in other pictures by the artist and is believed to have died shortly after the painting was executed. Dicksee was meticulous about the study of anatomy and would obtain casts of legs and limbs from dead beasts in order to portray them accurately.
The Zoological Society was founded in April 1826 by Sir Stamford Raffles. The Marquess of Lansdowne then supervised the building of the first animal houses on a parcel of land in Regent's Park. In April 1828 the Zoological Gardens were opened to Society members. In 1831 William IV presented the royal menagerie to the Zoological Society, and in 1847 the public were admitted to aid funding, and Londoners soon christened the Zoological Gardens the "Zoo". London Zoo soon had the most extensive collection of animals in the world.
Herbert Dicksee became a Fellow of the Zoological Society. Other members included Charles Darwin, Edward Lear and Archibald Thorburn.
The present work was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1888. Dicksee exhibited continuously at the Academy from 1885-1904, including other depictions of lions such as His Majesty (1888, no. 1595), The wounded lioness (1896, no. 665) and The King (1902, no. 1356). The watercolour version of the present painting, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1887 (no. 1444) was sold as ‘The Old King’ in 2004.
Primarily known for his etchings and mezzotint engravings, Herbert Dicksee was born in London in 1862 into an intensely artistic family. His grandfather had two sons, John Robert Dicksee, Herbert’s father, and Thomas Francis Dicksee, who were both artists, as was Thomas Francis’s son, the celebrated Victorian artist Sir Frank Dicksee, who was elected President of the Royal Academy in 1924. Frank Dicksee’s sister, Margaret, and Herbert’s sister, Amy, were both also successful painters.
At the age of sixteen Dicksee entered the Slade School of Art where he studied under Alphonse Legros, the distinguished painter, etcher and sculptor. While following strict instruction in drawing from life and from the antique, Dicksee also devoted much time to etching, which was keenly encouraged, with many of the students, including Dicksee, becoming members of the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers. During his five years’ course at the school, the young artist was successful in obtaining the Slade scholarship, in addition to several medals.
His love for animals developed during his time at the Slade. Living at 6 Fitzroy Square, he could rise early in the morning to visit the Zoological Gardens close by in Regents Park, before any visitors arrived, and could be found sketching the lions and tigers as they moved around their enclosure. The subject of the present painting is thought to have been a lion called Punch who appears in other pictures by the artist and is believed to have died shortly after the painting was executed. Dicksee was meticulous about the study of anatomy and would obtain casts of legs and limbs from dead beasts in order to portray them accurately.
The Zoological Society was founded in April 1826 by Sir Stamford Raffles. The Marquess of Lansdowne then supervised the building of the first animal houses on a parcel of land in Regent's Park. In April 1828 the Zoological Gardens were opened to Society members. In 1831 William IV presented the royal menagerie to the Zoological Society, and in 1847 the public were admitted to aid funding, and Londoners soon christened the Zoological Gardens the "Zoo". London Zoo soon had the most extensive collection of animals in the world.
Herbert Dicksee became a Fellow of the Zoological Society. Other members included Charles Darwin, Edward Lear and Archibald Thorburn.
The present work was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1888. Dicksee exhibited continuously at the Academy from 1885-1904, including other depictions of lions such as His Majesty (1888, no. 1595), The wounded lioness (1896, no. 665) and The King (1902, no. 1356). The watercolour version of the present painting, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1887 (no. 1444) was sold as ‘The Old King’ in 2004.