The Bather

Details

Sir William Hamo Thornycroft, R.A. (1850-1925)
The Bather
signed 'HAMO THORNYCROFT' (on the base) and dated '1910' on the underside
marble
21 1/8 in. (54 cm.) high

Provenance

London, Fine Art Society, 1926 (120 guineas), where bought by Robert Corry, the grandfather of the present vendor.

Literature

E. Manning, Marble and Bronze The Art and Life of Hamo Thornycroft, 1982, p. 197, no. 16, pl. 79.

Exhibited

London, Royal Academy, 1910, no. 1860.
London, Royal Academy, Exhibition of Works by the Late Sir Hamo Thornycroft R.A., and S Derwent Wood, R.A., 1927, no. 113 (lent by by Robert Corry).

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

Some twelve years before this piece was executed Thornycroft exhibited a half size Bather, cast in bronze, at the Royal Academy of 1898, no. 1966. The statuette achieved considerable popular acclaim and is now in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney. A red wax model of the subject, measuring 7½ in. is now in Leighton House, London, while a similar sketch was found in the sculptor's studio at his death. An 8 in. bronze statuette was made in 1907, and subsequent casts can be seen in private collections. The marble of 1910 remains unique, and has not been seen in public since the memorial exhibition of the artist's work at the Royal Academy in 1927, a year after its acquisition from the Fine Art Society.

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