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Priory Fine Art

Portrait of Natasha Wilkes Standing Full Length in an Interior

Original Oil Painting on Canvas

by Alfred Reginald Thomson (1894-1979)

  • Signed lower right.  Signed again lower left.  Inscribed with the identity of the sitter on the stretcher verso.
  • Auction record £73,250 GBP.
  • There are 49 paintings by this artist in the British National Art Collection.  For a comparable example see Mrs Vivienne Hilliard in Brighton Museum & Art Gallery.
  • Painting - 122cm (48") x 91.5cm (36")
  • Frame - 129.5cm (51") x 99cm (39")

Lot Notes

A very fine large oil painting depicting a young lady standing full length in an interior by important 20th century English artist Alfred Reginald Thomson.  Signed lower right.

Condition

In very fine condition.  The canvas not lined, torn, patched or repaired.  There are several pinhole punctures to the canvas visible on close inspection and the odd tiny area of paint loss.  Generally very good.  Clean, most attractive and ready to hang.  Presented in a later giltwood frame.

Artist Information

Alfred Reginald Thomson was an English artist, most notable for being an official War Artist to the Royal Air Force during World War Two. Thomson was born in Bangalore in India where his father was a British civil servant. Thomson was deaf and dumb from birth and when the family returned to Britain from India he attended the Royal School for Deaf Children at Margate. Later in life he was known, in the press, as the "deaf and dumb" artist. Although Thomson attended the London Art School in Kensington for a time, he was largely self-taught as an artist and his first paid work was designing posters for a whisky company. He also created a series of posters for Daimler Cars. At the end of the First World War Thomson established himself as a commercial artist and figure painter. In the 1930s he created a series of murals for the Duncannon Hotel in London. Thomson also had a talent as a caricaturist and he drew his fellow artists and friends. Thomson completed a number of commissions for the War Artists' Advisory Committee during World War Two and in September 1942 became a full time salaried artist attached to the Air Ministry, taking over the post that Eric Kennington had resigned from. Thomson painted several portraits of RAF air crews and also medical and civil defence subjects. In 1945 Thomson was elected to the Royal Academy and soon became a highly respected society portrait painter. He also continued to paint murals, most notably for the Science Museum and the London Dental School. In the 1948 Olympic Games in London, Thomson became the last person to win a Gold Medal for painting as medals for art were abandoned in subsequent Olympic games.

General Information

Hang your investments on the wall

Art has long been regarded as a strong and safe investment. Ellen Kelleher a personal finance reporter for The Financial Times recently wrote an article recommending art, particularly in the $500 - $50,000 range as a sound long term investment with an impressive current average annual increase of 9.7 percent. See Hang your investments on the wall by Ellen Kelleher Published October 22 2010 by the Financial Times.

About Us

Priory Fine Art specialises in high quality 17th - 20th Century British and European Fine Art. Our team have a combined experience of over 80 years in the field of fine art and have together handled the sale of many millions of pounds worth of art. As well as our own team of specialists we have close contacts from the leading auction houses who often assist us with particular pieces.

Postage and Packing

All of our paintings are professionally packaged in rigid hardboard boxes to ensure they reach you in pristine condition. Orders to the UK mainland are sent using a fully insured overnight courier service, orders to the rest of the World are sent on prompt and insured signed for services and are usually delivered within three working days.

Certificate of Authenticity

Every item we sell is fully guaranteed to be as described and a signed photo certificate is issued with every painting. We use the same cataloguing terms as most major auction houses, the terms that appear in the listing are also used on the certificates of authenticity. The cataloguing terms that we use have the following meanings;

  1. where the bold coloured text which forms the listing's heading reads 'by' and is followed by the artist's full name (or the artist's initials, if his full name is unrecorded), the work is in our opinion by the artist;
  2. where the expression "attributed to" is used, the work is in our opinion possibly a work by the artist, in whole or in part;
  3. where the expression 'circle of' is used, the work is in our opinion a work of the period of the artist and showing his influence;
  4. where the expression 'follower of' is used, the work is in our opinion a work executed in the artist's style but not necessarily by a pupil;
  5. where the expression 'manner of' is used, the work is in our opinion a work executed in the artist's style but of a later date;
  6. where the term "after" is used, the work is in our opinion a copy or pastiche (of any date) of a work by the artist. Where the term 'signed...' is used in our opinion the work has been signed by the artist, where the term 'with signature...' or 'bears signature...' is used in our opinion the signature is by a hand other than that of the artist.

Our guarantee

Every item we sell is covered by a no quibble 14 day money back guarantee.

In addition every lot which is described as being 'by' a certain artist without qualification is warranted by Priory Fine Art Limited for a period of one year. All items are warranted by Priory Fine Art Limited for a period of one year in respect of age and medium (for details see return section below.)


Payment options

Our preferred method of payment is credit/debit card.  Please call 01636 707 762 to pay by card.

We also accept payment through PayPal, by cheque/postal order or by bank transfer

We require payment within 48 hours of the end of the listing unless we have agreed otherwise before the end of the auction.


About Priory Fine Art

Priory Fine Art specialises in 17th - 20th Century British and European Fine Art. Our team have a combined experience of over 80 years in the field of fine art. We issue a certificate of authenticity with every painting that we sell.

We aim to provide a first class service with a personal touch, if you would like to discuss any painting we have for sale please call us on 01636 707 762.


Returns policy

All items are covered by a no quibble 14 day money back guarantee.

In addition Priory Fine Art Limited warrants for a period of one year from the date of sale that where the larger white text which forms a listing's heading states without qualification that a work is by a named author that that item is an autograph work by that author and not a forgery or reproduction of any kind.

Where any representations regarding age, authorship, culture, date, origin, period, source or medium is made in the larger white text which forms a listing's heading this is also warranted by Priory Fine Art Limited for a period of one year from the date of sale.

Only the larger white text that forms a listing's heading indicates what is being warranted by Priory Fine Art Limited. Priory Fine Art Limited's warranty does not apply to supplemental material that appears below the larger white text (i.e. the smaller text which forms the main body of each listing) and Priory Fine Art Limited is not responsible for errors or omissions in such material.

The warranty does not apply to any heading which is stated to be a qualified opinion. The warrant is not assignable and shall apply only to the original buyer of the lot as shown on the original invoice issued by Priory Fine Art Limited when the lot was sold. The buyer's sold and exclusive remedy is the cancellation of the sale and the refund of the original purchase price paid for the lot.

 


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