Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones 1833-1898
Portrait of Frances Graham (Lady Frances Horner), in profile facing left, c. 1875
pencil on paper
10 ¼ x 6 inches (26 x 15 cm)
Provenance
Angela Thirkell, the Artist’s granddaughter
Christopher Wood Gallery, London
Marco Goldschmied by 1980
Publications
Authenticated by Bill Waters and included in the official Burne-Jones catalogue raisonné (online)The present work is one of a number of drawings recording the features of Burne-Jones’s favourite muse, Frances Graham, aged about 22, in which he observed her profile prior to developing them for use in paintings such as The Arming of Perseus, The Golden Stairs and later in the 1880s in The Tree of Forgiveness (second version). That the present drawing remained in the artist’s possession until his death gives an added importance to the drawing as it was likely to have been used for reference later.