Sir William Orpen, R.H.A., R.A. (1878-1931)

The barn is that at Cley-next-the-Sea, Norfolk, near to where Orpen and his family spent their summer holiday in 1905. Orpen saw the barn as a theatre, in which he staged various 'theatrical compositions' including, Waiting their Cue (private collection), The Tragedy (Mildura Arts Centre) and The Harlequinade (private collection).

An inscription on the backboard of the present work misdates it to 1899. This confusion is understandable as the costume worn by the figure resembles that in a number of sketches worn by Grace Knewstub, Orpen's future wife, in 1899. These drawings date to their first meeting on holiday in Vattetot in France and culminate in Orpen's painting, Grace by Candlelight (private collection).

The Orpen Research Project