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Lot description
John Bagnold Burgess, RA, British 1829-1897- Portrait of a lady, standing full-length, wearing Spanish costume, in a tiled interior; oil on canvas, signed and dated '.J. B. Burgess. / .1885.' (lower right), 46.6 x 31.5 cm. Provenance: The Collection of Athanase G. Politis (1893-1968); Thence by descent (private collection, USA). Note: Burgess entered the Royal Academy Schools in 1849, where he won a first-class medal for life drawing. He went on to contribute to the Academy's annual exhibitions from 1852 until his death. The present scene is a characteristic example of Burgess's closely-observed, evocative figure studies, typically featuring elegant sitters in elaborate regional dress. Burgess first travelled to Spain in 1858, with his friend and fellow artist Edwin Longsden Long (1829-1891), and returned annually for the next 30 years. He was evidently heavily inspired by the people he encountered during his travels there, and their customs and traditions, which served as the principal subjects of his paintings over the course of his career. Indeed, Burgess repeatedly depicted enigmatic ladies wearing intricate lace mantillas, such as in his 'La Senorita', also standing against a tiled backdrop, which sold at Sotheby's, London, on 14 December 2022, lot 59 (£23,940), and in another portrait which sold at Sotheby's, London, on 8 September 2023, lot 510 (£82,550), in which the sitter exhibits a similarly dreamy, abstracted gaze. Other comparable works by the artist can be found in Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum [FAO35], Laing Art Gallery [1995.302], and Shipley Art Gallery [B4237]. Athanase G. Politis was the Ambassador of Greece to the United States from 1950 to 1954. He had previously served as the Greek Ambassador to the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1947. He occupied various positions as the Greek Government's representative in Egypt, and during his years there he wrote a two-volume history of the Greek colonies in modern Egypt, 'Hellenism and Modern Egypt', which was published in 1928.