Sir Winston Churchill, K.G., O.M., F.R.S., HON. R.A.

The Artist and thence by descent to his daughter Mary

London, Wylma Wayne Fine Art, Sir Winston Churchill: Exhibition of Paintings, 24th June - 30th July 1982, cat. no.24, illustrated.

David Coombs, Churchill: His Paintings, Hamish Hamilton, London, 1967, cat. no.175, illustrated p.146;
David Coombs and Minnie S. Churchill, Sir Winston Churchill's Life through his Paintings, Chaucer Press, London, 2003, cat. no.C175, illustrated p.133;
David Coombs and Minnie S. Churchill, Sir Winston Churchill His Life and His Paintings, Ware House Publishing, Lyme Regis, 2011, cat. no.C175, illustrated p.133.

Original canvas board. The board appears to be slightly bowed. There are three raised pin heads at each of the upper corners of the board which have been painted and are consistent with the artist's working method. There is a small area of paint loss at the upper left corner and surface dirt throughout the composition, including but not limited to several areas in the lower left quadrant. On extremely close examination there is a scuff to the painter surface at the lower right of the composition and some fine lines of craquelure in the purple pigments. Subject to the above, the work appears to be in good overall condition. Ultraviolet light reveals a horizontal line of florescence in the upper right of the composition. The work is presented in an ornate gilded frame. Please contact the department on +44 (0) 207 293 6424 if you have any questions regarding the present work.
"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.
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We are grateful to David Coombs for his kind assistance with the cataloguing of the present work.

By the 1930s Churchill had built up a close relationship with the artist William Nicholson, who visited him and his family regularly at Chartwell. Together they painted the landscape, and, when bad weather required, retreated indoors to work on still life compositions. Churchill would send members of the family roaming round the house looking for items with which to compose his ‘paintatious’ group (Mary Soames, Winston Churchill, His Life as a Painter, Collins, London, 1990, p.105) – whether a Bottlescape (C177, 1926, Lady Spencer-Churchill, National Trust, Chartwell), a floral still life (see lot 137), or a Silver life, drawing on pieces from the extensive collection at Chartwell, including the silver salver and elegant Neo-Classical silver vases used in the present composition, one an 18^th Century piece by John Kidder, and the other a 19^th Century copy by Mappin & Webb, London, which also appear in his Still Life (C174, Arabella Churchill, on loan to the National Trust, Chartwell). These, alongside the small tooth-pick box at the front of the composition also feature with a closely related work Still Life, Silver (C175) gifted by Churchill to Sir Anthony Eden, who later succeeded him as Prime Minister, and showcase the breath of Churchill’s technical ability.

In his delicate handling of the paint, Churchill looked towards Nicholson, with the polished silver artfully catching the light and bringing the composition to life. This style of heightening is at once so reminiscent of many of Nicholson’s still life compositions, including Still-life with Glass and Silver Spoon (circa 1935, whereabouts unknown), which features a ladle from the Chartwell collection and was most probably executed on one such visit, and The Golden Mug (1937, The Royal Collection). As in Nicholson’s compositions of the late 1920s and early 1930s, Churchill often incorporated flowers into his compositions, including Nasturtiums in a Silver Presentation Bowl (C172, Lady Spencer-Churchill, The National Trust, Chartwell), with bold, well-balanced colours matching the flash of the polished silver surface.