3030

Mrs Robert Celestin Guinness, née Dorothy Hilda Bingham 1935 

Seated half-length to the right, wearing a red brocade stole over a black dress, drop earrings and holding a pearl necklace in her right hand

Oil on canvas, 88 x 64 cm (34 ¾ x 25 in.)

Inscribed lower left: de László / 1935 XII

Laib L19552(364) / C11(12) Miss Guiness [sic]

NPG Album 1935, p. 37a

Sitters’ Book II, opp. f. 85: Dickie Guinness. Oct. 24. 1935

New Place Hotel, Southampton

In October 1934 de László recorded four sittings with this subject, the wife of Lucy de László’s [11474] nephew, Robert Celestin Guinness. He described her as: “a great charmeur [sic] & flirt – she is most paintable – will get a good one.”^[1] The artist made two preparatory drawings for the portrait [111319] [3029] both of which remained in his studio until his death.

The artist evidently enjoyed painting the portrait and wrote to his sitter’s husband at Christmas 1935 with much admiration: “Your so warmly expressed appreciative letter about Dickie’s portrait gave me much pleasure – am glad to know that you think I have succeeded to trans-mit on the canvas her most sympathetic perso-nality [sic]. I can only reciprocate in saying it was a great pleasure to me to paint her portrait – I had a most understanding sympathetic sitter in her. We both much look forward to see you both in your home. The portrait in its permanent home.”^[2]

Letters in the de László archive show that an honorarium of £300 was paid for the portrait, a special price as she was a member of the Guinness family. The artist typically charged £700 for finished portraits of this size.^[3] 

Dorothy Bingham was born 15 May 1896 in Chelsea, London, daughter of Henry E. Bingham and his wife Emily Robinson. She married James D. Hyem in 1916, in Chelsea, and they subsequently divorced. On 24 December 1929 in Marylebone she married stockbroker Robert Celestin Guinness (1893-1970). He was the son of Geoffrey Gwynne Guinness (1864-1923), Lucy de László’s elder brother, and Severine Curutchet from Buenos Aires. She was known to her family as ‘Dickie’ and they remembered her as being vivacious and amusing, with an extremely warm personality, as well as a devoted wife and mother.^[4] 

She died in a nursing home in Brighton 1 May 1983.

PROVENANCE:

By descent in the family of the sitter;

Unsold Christie's, London, 15 July 2021, lot 124

Offered Christie's, London, 16 December 2021, lot 91

LITERATURE:

•DLA121-0139, letter from de László's secretary Eileen Abernethy to Robert Celestin Guinness, 25 June 1935

•László, Philip de, June-November 1935 diary, private collection, 22 October 1935 entry, pp. 136-137

KF 2021