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Alphonse Legros
Portrait of an unknown sitter thought to be American

1907

$5,907.53
£4,250
€5,009.14
CA$8,031.15
A$8,995.92
CHF 4,676.88
MX$111,081.57
NOK 59,579.78
SEK 56,323.41
DKK 37,380.97
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About the Item

Alphonse Legros 1837-1911, was a French painter and sculptor, who lived in London from 1863 until his death in 1911. He was a teacher of etching and drawing and became Slade Professor of Art at University College London and prior to that taught at the South Kensington School, he taught by way of demonstration rather than instruction and taught his pupils to draw from memory which is what this picture displays. The picture was drawn in 1907 which we know from the Infrared imaging of the watermark, Legros almost certainly knew this sitter from his early days in England and presented him here as when he first knew him , in his early 20's, and this drawing would have been used to demonstrate his ability to draw from memory. Legros believed in instructing his pupils how to draw from memory which is a vitally important skill if you want to become a painter. This is a museum quality drawing and is is rare for Legros as his drawings are sometimes unfinished or reduced to a sketch, this is a completed study and probably drawn within an hour, this was the aim of Legros in teaching to show his pupils that it was possible to achieve such quality in so short a time. In my view one of the best draughtsman in pencil and charcoal of all time. As we are unsure of the sitter we do think this is an American artist who lived in the UK, and knew Legros . John Singer Sargent drew a similar picture in charcoal of Keith MacLeod and there maybe a possibility that this sitter is he. Enclosed are photos of Legros the master and of his signature which at some point was adapted by an unknown miscreant.
  • Creator:
    Alphonse Legros (1837 - 1911, British)
  • Creation Year:
    1907
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 18.75 in (47.63 cm)Width: 14.25 in (36.2 cm)Depth: 1 in (2.54 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Douglas, GB
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: No. 1491stDibs: LU2373215496112

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