Model Resting

Details

David Jagger, R.P., R.O.I. (1891-1958)
Model Resting
signed 'JAGGER' (lower left)
oil on canvas
37 ¾ x 70 in. (95.9 x 177.8 cm.)
Painted in 1936.

Provenance

The artist, until at least 1940.

Literature

Royal Academy Illustrated, 1937, p. 86, illustrated.
Dundee Courier, 1 May 1937.
The Yorkshire Post, 1 May 1937, illustrated.
The Yorkshire Post, 3 May 1937.
Sheffield Telegraph, 3 May 1937.
The Bystander, 5 May 1937, p.17, illustrated.
The Tatler, 5 May 1937, p. 31, illustrated.
The Sketch, 5 May 1937, p. 234, illustrated.
The Halifax Courier & Guardian, 26 August 1939.
The Artist, January 1940, illustrated.
The Palm Beach Post, 26 May 1999.
George, June 1999, illustrated.

Exhibited

London, Royal Academy, Summer Exhibition, 1937, no. 387.
Halifax, Art Exhibitions Bureau, Bankfield Museum, The Art of the Jagger Family, August - September 1939: this exhibition travelled to Burton-on-Trent, Museum & Art Gallery, November - December 1939; Darlington, Crown Street Art Gallery, December 1939 - January 1940; Lincoln, Usher Art Gallery, February 1940; Rotherham, Clifton Park Museum, March - April 1940; Sunderland, Public Art Gallery, April - May 1940; and Sheffield, Mappin Art Gallery, June - July 1940.
Leeds, City Art Gallery, Yorkshire Artists’ Exhibition, no. 3, catalogue not traced.

Special notice

Artist's Resale Right ("Droit de Suite"). Artist's Resale Right Regulations 2006 apply to this lot, the buyer agrees to pay us an amount equal to the resale royalty provided for in those Regulations, and we undertake to the buyer to pay such amount to the artist's collection agent. These lots have been imported from outside the EU or, if the UK has withdrawn from the EU without an agreed transition deal, from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice. This lot will be removed to our storage facility at Momart. Christie’s will inform you if the lot has been sent offsite. Our removal and storage of the lot is subject to the terms and conditions of storage which can be found at Christies.com/storage and our fees for storage are set out in the table below - these will apply whether the lot remains with Christie’s or is removed elsewhere. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Momart. All collections from Momart will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com. If the lot remains at Christie’s it will be available for collection on any working day 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lots are not available for collection at weekends.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Albany Bell

abell@christies.com +44 207 389 2738

Lot Essay

This rare large-scale non-commissioned work was begun following the critical success following his one-man exhibition with Old Bond Street dealers, J. Leger & Sons. Model Resting was his only submission for the 1937 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, where it was singled out by the art critic of The Yorkshire Post, 'Mr. David Jagger has one of the most notable pictures in the Academy, his subject is 'Model Resting'. Against a background of royal blue, the nude figure of a model lies on her side on a beige covered couch. Her auburn-haired head is supported by one hand under her chin, the other hand hanging idly down towards the floor. The scarlet-tinted finger and toe-nails accentuate the silky whiteness of her skin. Every line of the body suggests repose. The more one studies the execution of the work the more one becomes filled with admiration at Mr. Jagger’s artistry'.

Prior to its submission to the Royal Academy, Jagger had the painting photographed in his Chelsea studio, subsequently it was reproduced in several popular journals, including The Bystander, The Tatler and The Sketch.

The painting remained in the artists' own personal collection prior to the outbreak of World War Two. It was one of fifty-one paintings by David Jagger included in The Art of The Jagger Family, a touring exhibition organised by the Art Exhibitions Bureau which also featured the work of his elder sister, Edith and sculptures by his late-brother, Charles Sargeant Jagger R.A. Its inclusion saved the painting, as Jaggers' Chelsea studio received a direct hit and was destroyed during the London Blitz.

The Art of The Jagger Family toured seven English towns and cities, the London venue at the end of the tour fell through at the last minute, due to the ongoing bombing campaign. To show his virtuosity, a charcoal study of this work was hung alongside the painting in all the venues.

We are very grateful to Timothy Dickson for preparing this catalogue entry.
The present work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné on David Jagger, prepared by Timothy Dickson.

More from Modern British Art

View All