T.E. Lawrence—Augustus John | Three quarter-length pencil portrait of Lawrence in Arab robes and head-dress, [1919], signed by the artist

Augustus John

Pencil portrait of T.E. Lawrence

Three-quarter length pencil portrait of Lawrence, in Arab robes and head-dress, wearing a short dagger in his belt, c.300 x 190 mm., SIGNED BY THE ARTIST ("John") at lower right, newly matted in acid-free paper board (thus showing artist's crop-marks at right), and replaced in original frame, light spotting and browning

A FINE PORTRAIT, previously unknown to scholars and one of the earliest portraits of Lawrence by John. Grosvenor records and reproduces 7 finished John portraits of Lawrence in Arab dress made at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 (of which 3 are oil on canvas, 4 are pencil drawings). The present portrait bears strong similarities to the 4 pencil drawings, and though undated is certainly a result of these sittings. It is notable for being the only drawing in the series to be a three-quarter length portrait, and may have been a study for the famous oil painting reproduced as Grosvenor 1.

PROVENANCE:

Redfern Gallery label to back of frame, recording 1941 sale to Miss Anne Joyce

LITERATURE:

Grosvenor, An Iconography of the Portraits of T.E. Lawrence, 1988, second edition: recording and reproducing seven finished John portraits of Lawrence in Arab Dress. A copy of this reference work is included with the present lot.