Adam's Important Irish Art 5th December 2018

126 121 ELIZABETH RIVERS RHA (1903-1964) ‘The Bar Scene’, Dublin 1956 Oil on board, 39 x 29cm (15¼ x 11½”) Signed with initials; also signed twice and inscribed with title on artist’s label verso Born in Hertfordshire in England in 1903, Elizabeth Rivers was educated at Goldsmiths College, London. In 1926 she won a scholarship to the Royal Academy schools, where she trained under Walter Sickert. She moved to Paris in 1931 and continued her training under André Lhote and Gino Severini. By 1932 she was considered part of the ‘Twenties Group’ and exhibited work at the Wertheim Gallery in London. It was after that, that Rivers went to live on the Aran Islands. Her first book  This Man published by The Guyon House Press in 1939 was written while she was on Aran. She also wrote a book entitled  Stranger in Aran   which was published in 1946. A portfolio of her wood engravings was published by the Waddington Galleries. Except for a short period during the Second World War and in 1955, Rivers lived in Ireland where she also worked with Evie Hone on designs for stained glass. During the Second World War she lived in London and worked as a fire warden during the blitz. She also exhibited in the New English Art Club, the Royal Academy and the Royal Hibernian Academy. While she was living in the west of Ireland she became friends with The White Stag group founder Basil Rakoczi. He com- mented in a letter in 1942 about her: “Miss Rivers. Her book ‘This Man’ is certainly her best work. [...] the strange thing is her ability to draw male nudes—I have never known a woman draw the male body well before ... She ... is awfully interest- ing though very reserved ... I really think she is a genius mislaid.” € 2,000 - 4,000