SOLD

SOLD

Duncan Grant (British, 1885 – 1978)

A decorative design with Daphne

Watercolour on pencil on paper

54.5 x 53.5 cm.

Presented in Bloomsbury style painted wood frame

Provenance: With Bloomsbury workshop, London Bonhams, Knightsbridge, Decemeber 2018, lot 29

Richard Shone has confirmed the authenticity of this work

Duncan Grant was a British painter and designer, multiskilled in textiles, pottery ,theatre sets and costume designs. He was a prominent member of the Bloomsbury group. His painting style developed in the wake of French Post Impressionism. He often worked with Roger Fry and was co-director of the Omega workshops with Vanessa Bell. Although an active homosexual, his relationship with Vanessa Bell blossomed. In 1916, in support of his application for his recoginition as a conscientious objector Grant and his new lover David Garner set up as fruit farmers in Suffolk. Both applications failed but eventually the central tribunal agreed to recognise their status as long as they found more appropriate premises. Vanessa Bell found the house near Charlston near Firle in Sussex where they lived. He undertook many commissions for major projects including the Queen Mary and Lincoln Cathedral.