Sir William Orpen R.A., R.H.A.

Sold to H.P. Adams, London, 1930
Sale, Sotheby's London, 21st February 1934, lot 83
Sale, Sotheby's London, 7th May 1969, lot 88, as Bathers at Entrance to Cave, purchased by the Hon. Mrs A. Agnew Somerville

London, Goupil Gallery, 3rd Exhibition, October - December 1908, no.46, as Digby Cave; 
Glasgow, Royal Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts, 48th Exhibition, February - May 1909, no.590, as Digby Cave;
Liverpool, Walker Art Gallery, 39th Autumn Exhibition, September 1909 - January 1910, no.1018, as Digby Cave;
London, Royal Institute of Oil Painters, 46th Exhibition, 1929, no. 58, as The Smugglers' Cave, Kingsgate, illustrated in the exhibition catalogue.

Studio book 1930, p.47 as The Smugglers Cave (Kingsgate) £250;
Frank Rinder, 'William Orpen, R.H.A.', The Art Journal, January 1909, p.18, illustrated,  and Goupil Gallery Review, p.26; 
P.G. Konody and Sidney Dark, William Orpen; Artist and Man, Seeley Service, London, 1932, p.277;
Bruce Arnold, Orpen: Mirror to an Age, Jonathan Cape, London, 1981, p.217.

Original canvas. There are some very small and minor spots of old paint loss in the bottom left corner which have been stabilised and some very minor fine lines of surface craquelure at the base of the cave otherwise in good overall condition. Under ultraviolet light, there are some very fine and sensitive specks of retouching in the bottom right corner, some small spots to the dark pigment at the base of the cave around the figure of Mable Nicholson, a spot of retouching to the bottom left side of the cave, some very small specks inside the upper half of the cave and some further very minor scattered specks below the upper edge. Held in a plaster gilt frame.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In about 1903, Max Beerbohm introduced William and Grace Orpen to William and Mabel Nicholson, and the couples soon became firm friends. Orpen even allowed Nicholson to share his studio. Digby Cave was painted when both families went on holiday together in Margate, most likely  in the spring 1908. Grace and Mabel seemed to have been particularly exuberant. Margueritte Steen, Nicholson's biographer and companion in later life, puts it thus  'it was singular, how these two young women, sedate and reserved when apart, went crazy whenever they got together' (M. Steen, William Nicholson, Collins, London, 1943, pp.104-105) and she and Ben Nicholson both recall that whilst the two couples were out taking the evening air walking along the beach at low tide, Orpen and Nicholson, deep in conversation, suddenly realised their wives were not with them, only to discover them almost up to their necks in the sea, wearing evening gowns as yet unpaid for.

Digby Cave, or Smuggler's Cave, in Kingsgate Bay, between Margate and Broadstairs,  was originally linked by a trap door to the cellars of the Captain Digby Inn above. It still exists today but the magnificent entrance Orpen depicted has been almost entirely eroded. He seems to have used some artistic licence, cutting out several yards of tunnel to bring the more interesting rear closer to the entrance.

Orpen painted two versions of Digby Cave, both include Grace Orpen and Mabel Nicholson. The second version, has a pool left in the cave mouth by the receding tide (see fig 1, The Digby Cave, 1908, Mildura Arts Centre, Mildura, Victoria, Australia). It is likely that both versions were extensively exhibited in the years immediately following their completion in 1908.  Despite being described by Frank Rinder as 'dignified and luminous', Digby Cave remained unsold until 1930, and its companion piece was only purchased from the Artist's Estate in 1935, by Senator Elliott  of Melbourne.

By 1908 the pressures on the successful society portrait painter were beginning to build and he found such holiday interludes a welcome diversion. It allowed him to try new techniques, subjects and settings to which figures act as a counterpoint. These passages are cameos in themseves, just as the objects displayed with such fine detail are still life studies in miniature. The exquisite passage containing Grace and Mabel is no exception, beautiful in its conception and execution. It is interesting to compare this work with On the Cliff, Dublin Bay, Morning (lot 14) and Noll, son of Oliver St John Gogarty (lot 28), where the figures become increasingly  prominent, to the extent that the cameo passage in the Noll portrait is the Martello Tower framed by the sitter's legs.

The Orpen Research Project