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King James II as Duke of York

Artist

W. van Hagen, c.1685

product

King James II as Duke of York

Artist

W. van Hagen, c.1685

Guide Price:

SOLD

Ink and wash on paper; 13.5 by 10 ins; 35 x 25 cm; signed and dated 'W: V: Hagen 1685'; held in a later period gilt frame

Provenance: Arthur Bryant Triggs (1868-1936); acquired at the sale of his collection in 1945 and in a private collection, Sydney, Australia, until 2010; Private Collection, London

This intriguing late 17th century wash drawing featuring the image of the future James II as Duke of York is after the mezzotint engraving by Jan Verkolje of Sir Godfrey Kneller’s original portrait. Drawn and signed by W. van Hagen it is possible that this could be the work of the Dutch artist Witte van der Hagen who is recorded as a portraitist working around 1700 in the Netherlands. It seems unlikely to be the Willem van der Hagen recorded in Britain as he was principally a landscape and decorative scene painter, though it is not out of the question that it could be an early work.

Jan Verkolje was a painter, draughtsman and mezzotint-engraver and a pupil of Jan Lievens. In 1672 he settled in Delft, joining the artists’ guild soon after and becoming it’s head several times during 1678-1688. He seems never to have come to England, but some of his prints dated 1680-4 are lettered in English and were intended for the London market.

Depicting James whilst Duke of York it precisely follows the working drawings that would be undertaken by artists prior to engraving the mezzotint image for printing. As has been noted “the mezzotinters did not work straight from the canvases but used tonal, specially scaled-down intermidary drawings” survivals are rare as “many of the sheets must have been destroyed after use”. (Walpole Society LXX: Richard Thompson by Carol Blackett-Ord). In this instance it is even more curious that Hagen has copied Verlolje’s actual finished work. Possibly it was a practice piece for the young Hagen learning his trade or maybe it was for a fresh printing of the image which necessitated a complete new version to be drawn. The precise purpose of its creation will probably never be known but as a unique, and therefore rare, example of the artist as draughtsman and printmaker in the late 17th century it is an important work.

This drawing was for many years in the collection of Arthur Bryant Triggs a London born Australian collector who made a fortune through livestock and property. A great philanthropist he assisted financially many causes and charities at the same time building and maintaining a diverse collection of literature, art and other antiques which he would acquire on frequent trips to Europe. On the death of his wife the entire collection was sold at auction in Sydney, Australia in 1945.

Literature: Catalogue of a collection of drawings of the English, French, German, Dutch, Flemish, Italian & Spanish schools, by and attributed to artists named and prints illustrating the various methods of engraving : in the possession of A.B. Triggs [A.B. Triggs], Yass, N.S.W. 1922. Catalogue entry for this drawing on page 6.