William Orpen

Description

"One of the great British artists of the first quarter of the twentieth century, Sir William Orpen (1878-1931) is an example of an artist who, despite his career as a highly successful portrait painter, remains something of an outsider. Although Orpen is represented in many public collections in the UK, Ireland and the USA, his work does not fit easily into the conventional moulds of art history." "This illustrated monograph portrays an artist who, at the time of his death, was probably the best-known painter in Britain. The book reveals the full variety of Orpen's work, from his revitalization of the nude and his conversation pieces to his extraordinary allegories and war paintings, and analyses the series of self-portraits that are a particular feature of his oeuvre."--BOOK JACKET.