Alfred Grey RHA (1845-1926) A Faithful Companion Oil on canvas, 106.5 x 81.4cm (42 x 32'') Signed Provenance: Purchased at the Annual...

Alfred Grey RHA (1845-1926) A Faithful Companion Oil on canvas, 106.5 x 81.4cm (42 x 32'') Signed Provenance: Purchased at the Annual IADA Antiques Fair, Mansion House 1982 by John P. Reihill, Deepwell, Blackrock, Co. Dublin Despite the prodigious quantity of works exhibited by Grey throughout his life, A Faithful Companion does not appear among them. This may well be due to a subsequent change of the title of the painting. Typical of the subject-matter of painters of this period, the painting displays a sheepdog sitting attentively by his master's fireside chair, evidence of whose imminent return is suggested by the still-smoking clay pipe. To the left is a brace of game in whose demise the dog has played a key role and which he now patiently guards. Little information exists in relation to this painter, which is surprising when one notes the quantity of work which he exhibited at the RHA during his career. With the exception of four random years during the sixty year period in which he worked, (1864-1934), Grey showed an average of eight paintings annually - a total by the end of his life of almost 500 works. He lived all his life in the inner northside of Dublin city giving his address as 4 Lower Gardiner Street for forty-five years. He was the son of the painter Charles Grey and was elected RHA in 1871. He died in Dublin in 1926.

View more View less