12941

Portrait drawing

Brigadier General Francis Lloyd 1906

Head and shoulders in three-quarter profile to the left

Pencil on paper, 43 x 25.5 cm (16 ¾ x 10 in.)

Inscribed lower right: P. A. László / 1906   

Inscribed verso: Major General Francis Lloyd /of Aston / Painted by LÁSZLÓ in 1906 / at Farnborough Park Hampshire when Major General Lloyd was Brigadier General / Commanding the Guards Brigade at Aldershot

Sitters’ Book I, f. 72: Francis Lloyd 25 Feb 1906. [and in the artist’s hand: Farnborough Park / 906 / 20 July]

The Collection of the Grenadier Guards, Victoria Barracks, Windsor

De László made this drawing while he was staying with the Lloyds at their home, Farnborough Park, Hampshire, where he was painting a formal portrait of Lloyd [12017] and one of his wife [11994].

A letter from the sitter to the artist reveals that the drawing was a gift to Mary Lloyd and is a typical gesture by de László to commemorate the happy time spent with them: “The tapestries and the drawing you so kindly made for my wife are being framed and we hope to get them at home before long. I am so very grateful to you for your advice about the format. I think you would like the Italian frame my wife chose for the latter. I hope when you next come here you will find everything in order and in the places you selected for them.”^[1] 

De László was very particular about the frames for his pictures and Mary Lloyd was in correspondence with him about it: “I found that in the shop in Baker Street that they could make a black frame. It is plain and quite good but you might not like it. The shop is, for selling frames only, half way up Baker Street to the right hand side – but I have forgotten the name.”^[2]

For biographical notes on the sitter, see [12017].

PROVENANCE:        

Mrs Lloyd, the sitter’s wife;

Given to the Grenadier Guards Regiment

EXHIBITED:        

•Thos. Agnew & Sons, London, On Behalf of the Artists’ General Benevolent Institution. Exhibition of Portraits by Philip A. László, M.V.O., June-July, 1913, no. 29

LITERATURE:

•DLA121-0172, letter from de László to Lady Lloyd, 5 January 1931        

•Burrows, FSA, John William, The Essex Yeomanry, Southend-on-Sea, John Burrows & Sons, Ltd, 1925, pp. 36, 41

•DLA074-0013, letter from Lloyd to de László, 19 August 1906

•DLA074-0023, letter from Mrs Lloyd to de László, 3 July 1906

KF 2017