Beschreibung:

William Orpen RA, RI, RHA (1878-1931) "Portrait of James Hugh Smith-Barry- after Swinton (1904)," O.O.C., 61.1 x 46cm (24" x 18"). (1) From Anglo-Norman times onwards, the Barry family were prominent in county Cork and further afield. Closely associated with Barryscourt Castle and Fota estate, through the Elizabethan and Tudor periods, and the turbulent seventeenth century, the family survived many vicissitudes. However, in 1823, with the death of the 8th Earl of Barrymore, the title became extinct. It was revived in 1902, when Arthur Hugh Smith-Barry-(1843-1925) was created Baron Barrymore and took his seat in the House of Lords. Anxious to affirm his position in society, Arthur Hugh commissioned Sir William Orpen to paint a posthumous portrait of his father, James Hugh Smith Barry (1816-56). The painting was to be hung at Fota House, surrounded by portraits of Barry ancestors. It was to be based on a chalk pastel sketch made in 1854 by James Rannie Swinton (1816-1888), a Scottish portraitist whose sitters included the Countess of Dufferin and other wealthy patrons. The resulting portrait is a testament to Orpen’s skill as an artist. Although based on Swinton’s pastel sketch, it is spirited and full of vitality, the paint applied with the artist’s customary verve. On 20th December 1904, Orpen wrote to Baron Barrymore from Forthampton Court, Tewkesbury, informing him that he had sent the portrait to him, and trusting it was ‘to your liking’. On 28th December, Orpen wrote again, from 13 Royal Hospital Road, Chelsea, thanking Barrymore for a cheque for eighty four pounds and ten shillings. He mentioned how he had completed the portrait, working from photographs. Barrymore was so pleased with the portrait he asked some years later if he could have a copy made. Orpen delegated this task to his assistant, the young artist Sean Keating from Limerick. The original by Orpen was hung at Fota House in Cork, while the copy, by Keating, hung in the study at Marbury in Cheshire. Barrymore was also keen to have his own portrait painted by Orpen, who, in an undated letter to the Baron, outlined his prices. A head and shoulders was five hundred pounds, half-length was seven hundred while a full length portrait would set Barrymore back a thousand pounds. “Of course I should like to try and paint you very much – but it would have to be done here in London, as I will not be able to leave here this summer or autumn.” wrote Orpen. On 7th February, he wrote again, from 8 South Bolton Gardens, thanking Barrymore for a cheque for five hundred pounds which had arrived safely. Orpen had enjoyed painting the portrait: “it gave me great pleasure doing it, as it is always nice being with nice people, and strange as it may seem people who get painted very often are far from it! and treat one as a business proposition!!” Together with a collection of letters from Sir William Orpen to Lord Barrymore relating to the work. Dr. Peter Murray, 2022