Caricature of William Powell Frith, R.A. (1819-1909)

Details

Sir Leslie Ward ('Spy'), (1851-1922)
Caricature of William Powell Frith, R.A. (1819-1909)
signed 'Spy' (lower left) and with inscription and dated 'W.P. FRITH, R.A./May 10, 1973.' (on the mount)
pencil and watercolour, heightened with touches of bodycolour and with gum arabic, on blue paper, on the artist's original mount
11¾ x 7 1/8 in. (29.9 x 18.2 cm.)

Provenance

Anon. sale, Christie's, London, 22 May 1990, lot 190, when acquired by the present owner.

Literature

Vanity Fair, 'Men of the Day', 10 May 1973, no. 63.

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

One of the most celebrated and accomplished caricaturists of his time, Ward painted portraits and architectural studies, though he is most famous for his caricatures for the Graphic and from 1873-1909 for Vanity Fair. He studied architecture at the Royal Academy Schools and exhibited from 1868. He was knighted in 1918. The Forbes Collection includes five works by Frith, including For Better, For Worse (lot 10). Famed for his crowd scenes, Frith painted the varied panorama of Victorian life.

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