Philip Alexius de László (1869-1937)
Philip Alexius de László (1869-1937)

Portrait of Charles Douglas Conyers Lang

Details
Philip Alexius de László (1869-1937)
Portrait of Charles Douglas Conyers Lang
signed and dated 'de László' (lower right)
oil on canvas
26 x 21½ in. (66.1 x 54.6 cm.)
Provenance
By descent in the family.
Literature
DLA075-0081, letter from Lorna Lang to de László, 24 October [presumably 1925].
NPG Album 1925-1927, p. 19
Sitters' Book II, opp. f. 49: Charlie Lang [between inscriptions dated 29 June and 7 July 1926]

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Lot Essay

We are grateful to The Hon. Mrs de Laszlo and Katherine Field for their assistance in preparing this catalogue entry. The portrait will be included in the Philip de László catalogue raisonné, currently presented in progress online: www.delaszlocatalogueraisonne.com.

De László offered to paint this portrait for a reduced fee when he was approached by the sitter's mother in 1925. She wrote that if he could let his offer stand, she would prefer to postpone the sittings until the following spring or summer: "He is just losing his teeth too which does not improve his appearance". The boy's signature in the artist's sitters' book would indicate that he was painted the following June and July. De László, with his alla prima technique, probably executed this painting in 2 or 3 sittings of 2 hours.

Charles 'Charlie' Douglas Conyers Lang was born 26 September 1918 at Hartwell House, Buckinghamshire, the eldest son of Capt. Conyers Frederick Woodroffe Laing (1891-1961), who had changed his name to Lang, and his wife Lorna Marsalie Burn. She was the daughter of Sir Charles Rosdew Burn (1891-1930), later Sir Charles Rosdew Forbes-Leith, 1st Baronet of Fyvie. Both she and Sir Charles were also painted by de László during the First World War, in 1916 and 1915 respectively, as was a posthumous portrait of her brother Arthur in 1915.

Little more is known about the sitter than he served with First Battalion Devonshire Regiment in Burma during the Second World War and was awarded the Military Cross in June 1945. He was engaged 21 March 1940 to Marcelle Bratt youngest daughter of Mrs. F.E. Bratt of St. Marychurch, Torquay.

Charles Lang died in London in 1981.

We are grateful to Katherine Field for writing the catalogue entry for this portrait, which will be included in the Philip de László catalogue raisonné, currently presented in progress online:
www.delaszlocatalogueraisonne.com

The Hon. Mrs de Laszlo and a team of editors are compiling the catalogue raisonné of the artist's entire oeuvre. Katherine Field is the British and Canadian Editor.

Please see www.delaszloarchivetrust.com or contact www.catalogue@delaszlo.com for more information.

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