Motherhood

Details

Arthur Hughes (1832-1915)
Motherhood
signed with monogram 'AH' (lower right)
coloured chalks, on grey paper
10¾ x 6 in. (27.4 x 15.3 cm)

Provenance

Anon. sale, Sotheby's, London, 19 December 1945, lot 30 (£3 to Lessore).
Anon. sale, Sotheby's, London, 26 April 1990, lot 240.
with Beaux Arts Gallery, 1947, where purchased by Raymond Needham.
R. Russell-Adams.
with Kaye Michie, Surrey.

Literature

L. Roberts, Arthur Hughes: His Life and Works, Woodbridge, 1997, p. 226, no. 329.4, illustrated, as 'unlocated'.

Special notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 17.5% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

Leonard Roberts suggests that the present work was executed in the mid-1890s and is possibly one of the drawings in the 'Life of the Blessed Virgin' series. This series was commissioned by Julian Moore of 54 Shepherd's Bush Road. However, the commission was not straight forward, and Hughes wrote to F.G. Stephens on 23 July 1899: 'Do you happen to know a Mr Julian Moore, late of 54 Shepherd's Bush Rd.? He turned up some time ago and gave me a commission for a set of drawings (of a religious character) ... And my letter to him was returned 'gone away' by the Post Office ... I have been very slow with my work and possibly he may despair of me-but [he] always was most amiable when calling on me and I should like to carry out his scheme to the end.'

We are grateful to Leonard Roberts for his help in preparing this catalogue entry.

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