Frederick Henry Evans

platinum print, the photographer's monogram blindstamp on the image, tipped to a triple paper mount, signed in pencil on the first mount, a clipped facsimile of Beardsley's signature on the third mount, a reproduction of a J. E. Blanche portrait of Beardsley affixed to the reverse, 1895 (Newhall, History of Photography, p. 109)

This warm, finely detailed platinum print, with a characteristic matte surface, is in generally excellent condition. The lower edge of the print is lightly rubbed. The first mount is a grey and lightly-textured paper; the second mount is a thin gilt paper; and the third mount is a buff-colored, lightly-textured paper. Foxing is evident on the first and second mounts, but this does not appear to effect the print. The edges of the third mount are age-darkened, and the corners are bumped. On the reverse of the mount, there is light graphite rubbing and rust-colored soiling, possibly foxing. Written on the reverse of the mount in an unidentified hand in pencil is 'Acc. 3434-97', 'E92-A,' and 'GEH neg. 1643.'
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Beaumont Newhall was an early champion of the work of Frederick Evans.  He first saw original Evans photographs in London in 1944, in a memorial exhibition organized by the Royal Photographic Society.  Struck by the artistry and richness of the platinum prints, he reproduced two works by Evans in later editions of his History of Photography, including the image offered here.   In 1964, Newhall mounted a retrospective of Evans's work at the George Eastman House, the first such show in the United States.  The monograph Newhall authored for that exhibition was later reprinted by Aperture, with an expanded selection of plates, to accompany the 1975 Frederick Evans show presented at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Newhall's monograph remained the standard work on Evans for the next five decades. 

Frederick Evans first encountered Aubrey Beardsley around 1890.  Beardsley, who was then a clerk in London's Guardian Insurance Company on Lombard Street, would spend his lunch hour browsing Evans's bookshop in Cheapside.  Undiscovered as an artist, Beardsley would occasionally barter his drawings for books in Evans's shop.  Of the present portrait, Evans wrote, 'One of my earliest attempts, and perhaps successes, was [my portrait] of . . . Aubrey Beardsley, the well-known artist who died so young. . . His wonderful hands fascinated me.  I well remember, on the morning I was working at him, saying that I verily believed he could pose as La Stryge of Meryon's extraordinary etching, so 'gargoyleish' did he sometimes look.  At the word, he framed his wonderful profile in his long, bony, sensitive, nervous-looking hands, with their beautifully shaped and delicately kept nails.  There at once was my study, and a study any artist would be in ecstacies to have drawn or painted' (Photography, Christmas Number, 1903, p. 6).