ENGLISH ART ALBUM – PHOTOGRAPHS, PAINTINGS, PRISON ART, etc. 1930s-1950
Item #867
A most extraordinary assemblage of 62 photographic portraits, landscapes, watercolors, ink drawings, and ephemera, curated by a wealthy and well-connected British eccentric, and bound in bespoke leather. Most of the items that are dated in the album are from the 1930s, with a few from 1950/1951.
This unique and extraordinary compilation was the brainchild and decades long project of Edward Charles Le Grice, F.R.P.S. (Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society). There is some information available online about Le Grice, but nothing about this project, surely one of his proudest accomplishments, and probably a pastime which brought him much pleasure. More information on Le Grice is at the end of this description.
There are 86 ivory-paper leaves/176 pages, with three sided gilt-edged. 9” w X 11” h X 2.5” d. The binding is unique: the front cover is an embossed brown-calf hard-leather version of Le Grice’s own 1910 x-ray photograph of half a dozen seahorses, floating among seaweed. The spine, with embossed golden crosses, says in a pickled Latin “In Memoriam Pulcritudinis” and “Liber Recordationum” (“In Memory of Beauty/Book of Reminders”). On the rear cover, more hippocampi - one embossed, two in silhouette - between shadowy reeds.
Given that the assembled images all fit perfectly onto the pages of this album, the works appear to have been commissioned to fit its specific dimensions, and the collection took years to assemble. What is also immediately evident is the wide range of interests of the compiler…and the eventual buyer. Anyone who wishes to possess this unique collection must have the most eclectic and refined of tastes.
The album opens with a unique frontispiece: a painted page, done in 1939 but redolent of the illuminations of a medieval monastery; but the typewritten note pasted opposite, on the marbleized inside front cover, explains that this is the work of a prisoner, incorporating numerous heraldic seals, as well as the royal insignia of the city of Norwich (location of the prison).
Overleaves uniformly blank, with two exceptions: the first, a closeup of George V, which sits neatly opposite a portrait of Queen Mary; and the penultimate, a small image of the stained-glass windows at Chartres, forming a triptych with two exterior views of the cathedral on the facing page.
Another astonishing aspect of this album: the great majority of the pieces are hand-signed, either by the artist of the painting or illustration, or by the subject of the photographic portrait. This is only fitting, as both artists and subjects are quite well-known. Many of the signatures are on their own small paper plate, pasted beneath the portrait. Numerous portraits also have small heraldic symbols as well, pasted on the top edge, usually in the form of a small purple embossed seal. In addition to the seal, and the autograph, many pages have a small typewritten annotation pasted in as well.
One hesitates to spoil the surprises that await on every page with an exhaustive list, but obviously an extensive description of the contents is in order:
41 photographs - 18 portraits of dignitaries of Norwich and Norfolk, scientists, clergy, and fellow photographers; the rest of nature and architecture. Apart from Mr. Le Grice, 21 photographers are represented in the collection, 8 of whom were also members of the RPS. Interspersed with the photographs, in wonderfully random order, 16 original artworks are pasted in, and several additional ephemera.
Some notable entries:
⁃ A moody landscape photo of a biplane flying the darkened skies over Edinburgh
⁃ A photo of a small bird, dated 1950, described as being “one of the first taken by the new Electronic Flash”
⁃ A photograph, titled “One Winter Evening”, that can only be described as a still life: spectacles resting upon an open book, in lamplight, with pipe and matches nearby
⁃ A photo of three young Moslem boys, near an arched doorway, titled “The Sunlit Doorway” - captioned (The Carpet-Sellers’ Souk, KAIROUAN” [Tunisia])
⁃ Another doorway photographed, this one to a church in Kilpeck (Hertfordshire)
⁃ A signed portrait of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, in full regalia
⁃ Two gorgeous watercolors by Ethel E. Starmer, both of coastal subjects;
⁃ A speech given by the Queen Mother, typed on Sandringham letterhead, commending all involved in the restoration of the cloisters at Norfolk Cathedral, and the unveiling of statues of the king and queen there, dated 28th May 1938; Le Grice was present at the ceremony and had earlier present a Norwich Domesday book to Her Majesty
⁃ A stupendous - and unfortunately, unsigned - painting (likely in gouache) of Dartmoor, southeast England, in full springtime flower
⁃ An extraordinary painting of a tall-ship at sea, a three-master in full sail; the appended note explains that this is the work of an inmate at Norwich prison who utilized only distemper scraped off the walls of his cell
⁃ A watercolor portrait of two dogs, one sitting and one lying down, by Tansley Munnings, noted British spirit medium, famously exposed as a fraud
⁃ A glossy study of the Chorus at Westminster Abbey, emphasizing shadow and light
⁃ A photo of Ethel Colman of Norwich - the first woman in the British Empire to hold the office of Lord Mayor
Almost every image has been given a framing device, often a backing of deckled, marbleized tan, brown, or ivory-colored paper, to add to the visual appeal and museum-like quality.
The last 27 leaves, alas, are blank; either the project went unfinished, or, more likely, the volume had grown as thick as it could without damaging the art within or expanding the whole beyond its aesthetic limitations. Tantalizingly, the first blank page is headed “Cholmondeley”, in a flourished cursive, possibly indicating a planned commission, for that page, of an artistic interpretation of the famous country house of that name in Cheshire.
It is hard to emphasize just how unusual this volume is. Every image inspires awe at its beauty and technique, and will be studied for hours by a receptive audience poring over every detail.
The condition of the album is exquisite, and visually and physically impressive. This has clearly been treated gently and respectfully cared-for throughout its existence. Some minor flaws must be mentioned: On the front cover, a round indentation, as though from a ballpoint pen, and a faint dark ring around it; and a peculiar 1/4” scuff, with discoloration, on the upper left corner. On the back cover, two pocks, one that does not detract from the beauty - and one that unfortunately does: a small (4 mm x 8 mm) but immediately noticeable dent, as though something pointed (like a letter-opener) had been dropped from a low height onto the album. All 8 corners have been gently worn to a suede-like texture. Gentle rubbing to the spine, with only minor bumping and chipping of the gilded decorations.
A few pages have minor bumping along the right end of the top edge; three pages have a 1” closed tear, bottom left; and another has a 1/8” closed tear, outer edge.
A brief biographical sketch of Le Grice: born on the last day of 1888 in Norwich, one of seven children, he remained there until his death in mid-1970. As a young man, he apprenticed as a master grocer and tea dealer, before discovering the art of photography and, with it, his calling. Le Grice married on his 26th birthday and fathered three children, remaining a grocer while raising his family and pursuing his art, and becoming acquainted with many of the leading British photographers of the day.
His photographic interests were many and varied, but his most-respected specialties were in the fields of architecture and archaeology, work that took him throughout the Near East and North Africa, all over Western Europe, and much of North America.
His hometown, however, remained his career-long chief focus: in 1943, Le Grice published a book about Norwich Cathedral, having taken some 5000 images of it from every aspect; this became a three-volume set. Other books about Norwich followed. In 1936, he was made an Associate of the Royal Photographic Society, and later named a Fellow.
Several dozens of Le Grice’s striking works can be viewed at the Getty Images website, including his remarkable x-rays of botanical and marine life, gargoyles of Nôtre-Dame, and cityscapes of New York
A more detailed 2-page typewritten biographical sketch of Le Grice is included with this lot, as is a 4-page typewritten explanation of the contents and their provenance.
But much remains unexplained, and so this fantastic work of art remains a mystery.
List of Photographers:
G. Le Grice – Portrait of G. Ledward, signed by Ledward, 1938
Harold Hood, FRPS
Edith L. Willis
CW Farrow ARPS
Alfred G Buckham (signed) aerial photograph
Alexander Keighley Hon. FRPS (carbon print)
CJP Cave FRPS (signed)
Wm. Archer Clarke (1 signed, 1 unsigned)
Robert Chambers FRPS (x2)
William Farren (carbon print, signed)
WLF Wastell (signed)
EJ Long “The Sunlit Doorway” (inscribed, signed)
Reginald Trevenen Caudwell (signed)
Oliver Gregory Pike, FZS, FRPS (signed)
J. Dudley Johnston (signed, twice)
JR Adams, portrait of O. Bloch
Olaf Bloch (signed)
Herbert Flower, FRPS (signed)
Reginal Gaze (signed)
WP Starmer
Eric Hosking, OBE, Hon. FRPS (signed)
Subjects of Portraits
Reginald Barlett OBE (signed)
Ethel Mary Colman (signed)
WLF Wastell (signed)
Ben Butcher (inscribed)
Olaf Bloch (inscribed)
Geoffrey Fisher, Archibishop of Canterbury (1953
Artwork & Ephemera
James Henry Starling etching “Walberswick, Suffolk”
Gilbert Ledward RA, drawing inscribed to Le Grice
Tansley Munnings, pen and ink caricature and “Welcome Footsteps” watercolor
Ethel Elizabeth Starmer (2 watercolors)
FE Smith – The Dream pagoda” print
Inmate of Norwich Prison – watercolor of a ship
RS Yoshii ink & watercolor (signed twice)
SJW “Sustead Church Norfolk” pencil, inscribed with inials, dated 1933
HM Elizabeth the Queen Mother: Typed address on Sandringham stationary, 28 May 1938.
Price: $7,500.00