Portrait of Arthur Symons

Details

AUGUSTUS JOHN, O.M., R.A. (1878-1961)
Portrait of Arthur Symons
oil on canvas
34 x 25 in. (86.5 x 63.5 cm.)
Painted circa 1914.

Provenance

Peter A. Salm.
Anonymous sale; Christie's, London, 20 June 1996, lot 39, where acquired by the late Barry Humphries.

Literature

A. Symons, Poems, vol. I, London, 1924, frontispiece.
R. Lhombreaud, The Dictionary of National Biography 1941-50, London, 1959, p. 859.
A. John, Chiaroscuro, Oxford, 1952, p. 223.
M. Holroyd (intro.), Augustus John: Autobiography, London, 1975, p. 250.

Exhibited

London, Alpine Club, Pictures and Decorations by Augustus John, November 1917-February 1918, no. 37.
New York, Scott & Fowles, Augustus John in the American Collections, March-April 1949, no.17.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Benedict Winter Associate Director, Specialist

Lot Essay

John painted the poet, critic, and translator Arthur Symons (1865-1945) during the First World War. He later recalled that the sitter, who was recovering from a breakdown, was constantly disturbed by the roaring aeroplanes overhead. (see M. Holroyd, loc. cit.).

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