Sir Stanley Spencer, R.A.

The Estate of the Artist
Anthony d'Offay Gallery, London, where acquired by the present owner in 1978

London, Anthony d’Offay Gallery, Stanley and Hilda Spencer, 27th September - 28th October 1978, cat. no.31;
London, Royal Academy of Arts, Stanley Spencer RA, 20th September - 14th December 1980, cat. no.278, illustrated p.227.

Duncan Robinson, Stanley Spencer, Phaidon Press, Oxford, 1990, p.65;
Keith Bell, Stanley Spencer: A Complete Catalogue of the Paintings, Phaidon Press, London, 1992, cat. no.449, illustrated p.237.

Not viewed out of the frame. The canvas undulates very slightly at both the upper and lower right corners, but otherwise the canvas appears sound. There is a small pinhole towards the centre of the left vertical edge. There are several extremely fine lines of craquelure apparent in the cream pigment at the left of Hilda's head, with one or two extremely tiny possible associated losses. There is a tiny fleck of loss to the light green pigment at the upper horizontal edge, above Hilda's hat. There is some slight rubbing around the edges of the canvas. There is some light surface dirt in places. Subject to the above, the work appears to be in very good overall condition. Ultraviolet light reveals no obvious signs of fluorescence or retouching. The work is float mounted and housed within a painted wooden tray frame, held under glass. 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 Carolyn Leder for her kind assistance with the cataloguing of the present work.

The present work is based on one of the Astor Scrapbook drawings of circa 1943-4, and was intended to be part of Stanley’s Hilda Memorial Chapel in his Church house scheme. The work depicts Stanley and his first wife Hilda Carline, commemorating one of their many walks around Hampstead, where the Carline family had a home at no.47 Downshire Hill for many years. The canvas, while unfinished, had clearly been of particular importance to Stanley as it was hanging on his wall in Fernlea, Cookham at the time of his death.