20th Century British Art

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Lot 47
  • 47

Frances Hodgkins 1869-1947

Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
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Description

  • Frances Hodgkins
  • Portrait of Arthur Lett-Haines
  • oil on canvas
  • 43 by 38cm., 17 by 15in.

Provenance

Gifted to the sitter by the Artist and thence to Cedric Morris
Sale, Sotheby's, London, 25th May 1983, lot 129, whence purchased by the present owner

Exhibited

Auckland, Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council of New Zealand, Frances Hodgkins 1869-1947: Centenary Exhibition, 1969, no.27.

Literature

Arthur R. Howell, Frances Hodgkins: Four Vital Years, Rockliff Publishing Corporation, London, 1951, illustrated p.107;
Eric H.McCormick, Portrait of Frances Hodgkins, Auckland University Press, Auckland, 1981, illustrated p.92;
Iain Buchanan et al, Frances Hodgkins: Paintings and Drawings, Thames and Hudson, London, 1995, illustrated figure 21, p.36 (wherein whereabouts unknown).

Catalogue Note

Frances Hodgkins first met Arthur Lett-Haines (1894-1978) in 1919 when he moved to Cornwall to be with Cedric Morris. In spite of the polarity of their characters, Lett and Morris subsequently became life-long partners, sharing a passionate commitment to the encouragement of art, as well as to one another. As young artists at the beginning of their careers, the friendship that developed between Morris, Lett and Hodgkins can be catalogued through a series of portraits that they produced of one another. The present work was probably painted in Cornwall in 1920 at the couple's Newlyn home before their departure to Paris that Christmas. It was not until 1929 that Lett and Morris moved to Benton End and opened their ‘East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing’. This eccentric, but highly influential school not only exposed its pupils to their progressive style of art education, but also to Lett’s legendary culinary skills and the invaluable forum that his lunches and dinners provided for their discussion and growth.

A 1919 drawing of Frances Hodgkins by Arthur Lett-Haines has been recently acquired by the National Portrait Gallery and can be seen in their current exhibition, 'Portraits on Paper: Recent Acquisitions' (until 3 December 2006).