Augustus John, O.M., R.A. 1878-1961

Arthur Tooth & Son, London whence acquired by Anthony Marecco in the mid-1950s, and thence by descent to the present owner

Lali Horstmann (1900-1954), Berlin society hostess and wife of collector and diplomat Freddy Horstmann, sat for this portrait by John circa 1926 at her husband's request. Though Freddy rejected the portrait and sent it back with the artist to his studio, it was later acquired by Lali's lover, the barrister Anthony Marecco. First published in 1953, Lali Horstmann's acclaimed autobiography, Nothing for Tears (republished by Phoenix Press, 2001) has been described as 'one of the most remarkable personal documents to come out of Germany at the end of the war'.