Lilian Holt Sold at Auction Prices

⊕ DAVID BOMBERG (BRITISH 1890-1957)

⊕ DAVID BOMBERG (BRITISH 1890-1957) BARGEES gouache and chalk on paper 57 x 74cm; 22 1/2 x 29in 67 x 84.5cm; 26 1/4 x 33 1/4in (framed) Property from the Estate of a Gentleman Provenance Lilian Bomberg (née Holt), the artist's second wife (the painter Lilian Holt, 1898-1983, studied at Putney School of Art and Regent Street Polytechnic. She married Bomberg in 1929, and became a founder member of Borough Group, the collective of painters who had been influenced by Bomberg whilst he was teaching at Borough Polytechnic that formed in 1946 and disbanded in 1951. After Bomberg's death, Holt focused on her own work, traveling widely whilst continuing to promote Bomberg's legacy) Acquired from Lilian Bomberg by the father of the present owner prior to 1975 Exhibited Leicestershire Museums and Art Galleries (on loan from circa 1975) Executed circa 1920, in the present work four rugged bargees concentrate on the task of steering their vessel along a canal. The silhouetted figure dominating the left foreground stands with his legs splayed for balance as he wields a large pole in his outstretched arms to manoeuvre the barge down stream. His fellow bargees to his right hold tight onto the mooring ropes as they lean backwards, using their body weight to steady the vessel as it pivots slowly round in the water. Bargees who worked the waterways became an important theme for Bomberg at this time. The artist had first shown an interest in the subject when stationed in Flanders in the First World War. But as Richard Cork recounts, Bomberg's first wife Alice recalled how in the summer of 1919 Bomberg became captivated by the subject anew whilst they were out bicycling in the countryside and happened to cross a bridge over a canal. Seized by the scene before him 'four or five barges in line... we stood there for nearly an hour while he made his sketch and then we rode home...' (see: Richard Cork, Bomberg, London, 1988, p. 134). He also witnessed the life of the watermen and women who worked the Regent's Park Canal that snaked through north London. The result was a series of studies of barge workers and their families and at least two major oil paintings of similar size: Barges painted in a semi-fractured geometric style (collection of Tate), and a looser more expressive and gestural painting Barges on the Canal (private collection). Cork argues that Bomberg's interest in bargees, who occupied a marginal place in society, reflected his own position as an artist who felt like an outsider, his work frequently misunderstood. Despite the success of the thrusting angular forms of his pre-War work, he had not fallen in with Wyndham Lewis, for which reason he had never been a Vorticist. Now, although he showed Barges at the 1919 London Group exhibition, he was conspicuous by his absence in the influential Group X exhibition at the Mansard Gallery the following year which featured the likes of William Roberts, Christopher Nevinson, Frederick Etchells and Frank Dobson. In truth Bomberg was looking for a new direction. His gruelling experiences in the trenches had sapped his energy for celebrating a dynamic, mechanised world. Rather he was searching for a gentler more thoughtful style and a subject matter to go with it. The gentle rhythms of the country's waterways and the slow moving pace of the Bargees who lived from it seemed a perfect place to start.

Lilian Holt (Bomberg) (British, 1898-198

Lilian Holt (Bomberg) (British, 1898-1983), figural portrait, signed l.r., oil on canvas, 90 by 70cm, framed. Note: Lilian Thirza Charlotte Bomberg née Holt was a founding member of the Borough Group together with her husband David Bomberg. Note: Artist Resale Rights apply

Lilian Holt (Bomberg) (British, 1898-198

Lilian Holt (Bomberg) (British, 1898-1983), Brides Head, signed l.r., oil on board, 89 by 59cm, framed. Note: Lilian Thirza Charlotte Bomberg née Holt was a founding member of the Borough Group together with her husband David Bomberg. Note: Artist Resale Rights apply

Lilian Holt,  British 1898-1983 -  The Old Curiousity Shop, 1968 char

Lilian Holt,  British 1898-1983 -  The Old Curiousity Shop, 1968 charcoal on paper, signed and dated lower right 'Lilian Holt '68', 31 x 24.6 cm (ARR) 

Lilian Holt, British 1898–1983

Lilian Holt, British 1898–1983 Greenwich from the Observatory, 1964; charcoal on paper, signed and dated lower right 'Lilian Holt 64', 51.5 x 66.5 cm (ARR) Provenance: Boundary Gallery, London Please refer to department for condition report

Lilian Holt, British 1898–1983

Lilian Holt, British 1898–1983 Rouen Cathedral, 1953; charcoal on paper, signed and dated lower left 'Lilian Holt 53', 47.3 x 59 cm (ARR) Provenance: Boundary Gallery, London Please refer to department for condition report

Lilian Holt, British 1898-1983

Lilian Holt, British 1898-1983 Standing figure (with composition on the reverse), 1948; oil on board, signed with initials and dated on the reverse 'LB 48', 55.3 x 50 cm (ARR) Provenance: Boundary Gallery, London Please refer to department for condition report

Lilian Holt, British 1898–1983 - Cathedral, 1953; charcoal on paper, signed and dated lower r

Lilian Holt, British 1898–1983 - Cathedral, 1953; charcoal on paper, signed and dated lower right 'Lilian Holt 53', 59.5 x 47.5 cm (ARR) Provenance: Boundary Gallery, London Note: with thanks to Agi Katz for her assistance with the cataloguing of this work Mounted and held in a glazed wooden frame, with minor scuffs. May or may not be stuck down as unexamined out of frame. Creases and undulation throughout sheet, particularly along left and right edges. Repaired tear, upper right edge horizontally. Minor foxing top left and top right corners. Charcoal otherwise in very good condition.

Lillian Holt, British 1898-1983 - Coastal scene;

Lillian Holt, British 1898-1983- Coastal scene; oil on canvas, signed and dated '59, 46x61cm (ARR) Provenance: The Mall Galleries, London, according to the label accompanying the painting. Please refer to department for condition report

§ Lilian Holt (British 1898-1983)

§ Lilian Holt (British 1898-1983) Ay Chrysostomos, Cyprus, 1948 titled and dated to the stretcher oil on canvas 62 x 75cm Footnote: Provenance With Gillian Jason Gallery, London, where acquired in 1983 Exhibited London, Gillian Jason Gallery, Lilian Holt (1898 - 1984) Memorial Exhibition , 13 July-13 August 1983, no.32

§ Lilian Holt (British 1898-1983)

§ Lilian Holt (British 1898-1983) Carmencita; an abstract to the reverse signed and dated 'LILIAN HOLT 54' (lower right) oil on board 74 x 62.5cm Footnote: Provenance Sale; Roseberys, London, 13 June 2006, lot 1 With Abbott and Holder, London, where acquired in 2006 It has been suggested that the present work could be a self portrait of the artist. British artist Lilian Thirza Charlotte Holt, also known by her married name, Bomberg, received her early training at Putney Art School, before serving in the Women’s Land Army during the First World War. Following the War, she took further art classes at Regent Street Polytechnic. In 1923, Holt married her first husband, the art dealer Jacob Mendelson, and in 1924 gave birth to her daughter, Dinora. During this time, Holt was completely dedicated to her young family and struggled to find opportunities to paint, but through her husband’s work she was constantly exposed to art, developing admiration for works by Sickert, Bomberg and Epstein. In 1929, having divorced Mendelson the previous year, Holt married the artist David Bomberg and in 1935 gave birth to her second daughter, Diana. After her marriage to Bomberg, Holt largely abandoned painting, focussing her efforts entirely on nurturing her husband’s career. It was only in 1945, upon the insistence of Bomberg, that Lilian resumed painting. This, however, was short lived, as in 1957, Lilian once again interrupted her career to care for Bomberg, whose health at this time was in decline. After Bomberg’s death, Holt once again recommenced her painting career, travelling to Mexico, Basutoland, Andalusia, Yugoslavia, Morocco, Turkey, and Iceland to paint, whilst continuing to promote Bomberg’s artistic legacy.

Lilian Holt, British 1898-1983- Nude; oil on board, signed and dated 47,

Lilian Holt, British 1898-1983- Nude; oil on board, signed and dated 47, 65x49cm (ARR) In a dark stained frame with gilded slip. Please refer to department for condition report

Lillian Holt, British 1898-1983- El Barrio, San Fransisco, Ronda; charcoal on paper, signed and

Lillian Holt, British 1898-1983- El Barrio, San Fransisco, Ronda; charcoal on paper, signed and inscribed in pen, 43.5x58.5cm (ARR) Provenance: with Boundary Gallery according to label attached to the reverse of the frame. Please refer to department for condition report Pine glazed frame with off-white mount unexamined out of frame signed and inscribed lower right

Lillian Holt, British 1898-1983- The Old Curiosity Shop, 1968; charcoal on paper, signed and da

Lillian Holt, British 1898-1983- The Old Curiosity Shop, 1968; charcoal on paper, signed and dated in pen, 30.7x24.5cm (ARR) Provenance: with Boundary Gallery according to label attached on the reverse of the frame. Please refer to department for condition report In wooden glazed frame with cream mount signed and dated lower right unexamined out of frame

Lilian Holt (British, 1898-1983) Sequinal, Basutoland

Sequinal, Basutoland signed and dated 'Lilian Holt 1964' (lower left), charcoal 36 x 52cm (14 3/16 x 20 1/2in).

Lilian Holt (British, 1898-1983) Sequinal, Basutoland

Sequinal, Basutoland signed and dated 'Lilian Holt 1964' (lower left), charcoal 36 x 52cm (14 3/16 x 20 1/2in).

Lilian Holt (British, 1898-1983) Recto; 'Nude: Verso; 'Sun God'

Recto; 'Nude: Verso; 'Sun God' signed 'Lilian Holt', titled and dated 1947, charcoal 55 x 37cm (21 5/8 x 14 9/16in).

Lilian Holt (British, 1898-1983) The Maluti Mountains

The Maluti Mountains signed and dated ''45/LILIAN HOLT' (lower right), oil on canvas 25.5 x 36.1cm (10 1/16 x 14 3/16in).

Lilian Holt (British, 1898-1983)

signed and dated 71, oil on canvas

Lilian Holt (1898-1983)

London River signed and dated 'Lilian Holt '69' (lower right) oil on canvas 33 x 42in. (83.8 x 106.7cm.) EXHIBITION London, Woodstock Gallery Ltd., Jun - Jul 1971, no.12. London, Gillian Jason Gallery, no.41.

Lilian Holt (British, 1898-1983) Dry River, Ronda 63.5 x 76 cm.