Ivon Hitchens

Alex. Reid & Lefevre Ltd, London
Acquired by the family of the present owners in the late 1940s - early 1950s
Private Collection

London, The London Group (details untraced).

Original canvas. The canvas undulates very slightly towards the left side of the lower horizontal edge, but otherwise the canvas appears sound. There are scattered areas of light craquelure. There are further areas where it appears that the artist has scraped the surface layer down to the preparation. There are areas where the paint has reticulated, giving the surface a speckled appearance, particularly noticeable at the left edge. There are some minor instances of frame abrasion apparent at both of the upper corners. There is a small fleck of possible old loss to the brown pigment just to the right of centre near the upper horizontal edge. There are some extremely small specks of paint loss visible in places, including to the ochre pigment near the centre and right parts of the lower edge and the grey pigment along the right vertical edge, with some possible further very tiny flecks elsewhere. There are some light speckles of bloom to the surface in places, and general surface dirt to the work. There is a spot of studio detritus near the centre of the upper edge. Ultraviolet light reveals a layer of discoloured varnish. There is a spot of retouching to the brown pigment just below the centre of the left vertical edge. There is also a very old small area of retouching in the upper right quadrant in the blue tones. The work is presented in an ornate moulded plaster frame, with a canvas slip. There are some losses to the plasterwork of the frame in places. Please telephone 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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

We are grateful to the Estate of the Artist for their kind assistance with the cataloguing of the present work.