Sir John Lavery, RA, RSA, RHA

Provenance: The artist;
The Hon. Mrs. A. Holt (artist's granddaughter);
By descent;
Private collection, UK

Following the outbreak of the First World War, the celebrated society painter Sir John Lavery sought to enlist with the Artists’ Rifles but was deemed too old for active service. Instead, he turned his attention to recording aspects of the war at home, before a serious car accident in London during the summer of 1915 forced a prolonged period of convalescence. By the following year, Lavery had resumed painting and began observing the Royal Naval Division at the recently requisitioned Crystal Palace, Sydenham, which had been converted into a major naval training and accommodation centre. These observations resulted in two important works now in the collection of the Imperial War Museum: 'Royal Naval Division, Crystal Palace: The Spot Known as the Quarter-Deck' (1916) and 'Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, Crystal Palace' (1917).

The present work, almost certainly painted en plein air, is likely one of a number of studies executed during this period as Lavery familiarised himself with the setting and developed ideas for larger compositions. Sailors in white naval uniform are dispersed across the grounds before the unmistakable silhouette of the Crystal Palace, its vast glass and iron structure rendered in muted tones of grey and mauve. The artist’s fluent brushwork and restrained palette lend the scene an immediacy and spontaneity characteristic of his finest oil sketches.

Lavery was knighted in 1918 in recognition of his services to art and his contribution as an official war artist during the First World War.

The work was formerly in the collection of the Hon. Mrs Holt, the artist’s granddaughter, and has descended through the family.