Adam's MID-CENTURY MODERN 2nd November 2021

96 CECIL BEATON (1904-1980) PORTRAIT OF A YOUNG BOY (NICHOLAS PASCOE GRENFELL) Oil on canvas, 88.5 x 67cm Signed Provenance: Commissioned by the family; hence by descent. The Grenfells were family friends and neighbours of the artist. € 8,000 - 12,000 Sir Cecil Beaton was a distinguished photographer but he is best referred to as a Renaissance man as his many talents also saw him comfortably dip into interior design, costume and set design and painting. Growing up, Beaton’s nanny had a Kodak 3A camera and, sensing his interest, she took it on herself to teach him the basics of photography and film development. From here, his artistic eye was nur- tured and his first image was published in Vogue while he was still in college. His debut exhibition was held with the aid of Osbert Sitwell at the Cooling Gallery, London. The show raised some eyebrows and Beaton temporarily relocated to New York where he felt his work would be better received. The end result was a contract with Condé Nast to take photographs exclusively for them. As his reputation grew, so did the renown of his clients and Beaton was employed to take the official wedding photos of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. He was subsequently honoured with photo- graphing Queen Elizabeth II on her coronation day. He similarly excelled in his work with film and theatre and won two academy awards for his costume designs in Gigi (1958) and My Fair Lady (1964). Cecil Beaton is hailed as someone who acknowledged his sitter’s imperfections but then did his very best to hide them. Beaton would choose flattering angles and carefully placed light in order to hide or misrepresent his subject’s flaws. This approach led to captivating images of beautiful people, whether in photograph or paint. Helena Carlyle, October 2021