Portrait of an Artist is a new exhibition from Liss Llewellyn, renowned art dealers who brought together the Laing’s current display WOW: Women Only Works on Paper. Comprising over 85 oil paintings, drawings and prints, the exhibition will offer audiences an opportunity to step into the inner world of the artist, shedding light on their personal lives and creative processes.
The exhibition will explore five themes: The Artist’s Studio, Self-Portraits, The Artist’s Entourage, Portraits of Artists by Artists, and Allegories of Creation.
Liss Llewellyn have spent over thirty years working directly with artists’ studios, gaining rare access to works that have hardly been seen since the day they were created. Those selected for Portrait of an Artist record the introspective self-gaze of the artist, and moments of intimacy that suggest the artist was in love with their subject- be it a future husband or wife, model or child. Though not always of obvious importance and sometimes modest in size, the works portray intensely emotional moments, transporting the viewer to where the artist’s personal and working environments overlap.
Over 50 artists from the late 19th century to the 1940s will be represented, including Evelyn Dunbar, Albert de Belleroche, Winifred Knights, Alan Sorrell and William Strang. They will be complemented by popular works from the Laing’s collection, such as those by Sir William Orpen and Ralph Hedley.
The exhibition will be accompanied by a new Liss Llewellyn publication.