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"A Short Story", Important Painting & Poem, Stephen Tennant & Siegfried Sassoon

About the Item

Remarkable both esthetically and historically, this delicate and atmospheric watercolor and ink painting by Stephen Tennant illustrates a short poem by his lover, Siegfried Sassoon, entitled "A Short Story." Like many of Sassoon's best known works, this poem has a bittersweet, wistful quality, which is matched by the soft colors and pensive expressions of the two figures in the accompanying painting. Tennant was considered the brightest of the "Bright Young Things" in early 20th century England, and for several years he was deeply involved with Sassoon, a member of the famed Sassoon trading family, who memorialized the terrors of war and the joys of peacetime in his poems. This painting is one of the most evocative and beautiful remembrances of the Tennant-Sassoon relationship we have seen. It was in the collection of Seymour Stein, who amassed an enormous collection of fine and decorative art, much of it featuring male nudes and gay artists; Stein purchased it from a Bonhams auction in 2008. (Dimensions include the matte; painting is 11.75 inches high by 9.5 inches wide.)
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 16 in (40.64 cm)Width: 12 in (30.48 cm)Depth: 0.1 in (2.54 mm)
  • Style:
    Art Deco (Of the Period)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    Circa 1920s
  • Condition:
    Minor toning to paper.
  • Seller Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU865137376682
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