Roderic O'Conor (1860-1940)
Nude Study
Pencil, 24 x 22.5cm (9½ x 8¾'')

Provenance: Dr. Robelet, Neuil sur Layon. Thierry & Lannon, Brest, sale of 14 October 2009

Frequent drawing from a...

Roderic O'Conor (1860-1940)
Nude Study
Pencil, 24 x 22.5cm (9½ x 8¾'')

Provenance: Dr. Robelet, Neuil sur Layon. Thierry & Lannon, Brest, sale of 14 October 2009

Frequent drawing from a posed life-model was an essential part of Roderic O'Conor's studio practice, and it was from sketches such as these that he developed ideas and concepts for his paintings of both clothed and unclothed models which he made in his Paris studio. He had moved to the city in 1904 following his well-documented thirteen year association with Brittany. It was in Paris that his relationship with a young model, Renée Honta began, and they eventually married in 1933 and moved to the small town of Nueil-sur-Layon in the Départment of Maine et Loire in the far west of France. After O'Conor's death there in 1940, his widow became his chief beneficiary under the terms of his will, and she continued to live in the splendid maison-de-maitre which had been their home. When she died in 1955, a local resident, Doctor Robelet acquired a portfolio of O'Conor's drawings, which included these works and with others they were subsequently sold by the auction house of Thierry & Lannon in Brest, in their sale of 14 October 2009.

 

Roy Johnston, August 2018

 

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