Herbert James Draper (British, 1863-1920)

Puck

Pastel

Inscribed ”PUCK” (middle left) and further inscribed and signed `Study for Puck/ Herbert Draper’ (lower right)

18.3/4 x 14.7/8 in. (47.7 x 37.8 cm.)

A study for `Midsummer Eve`, c.1902, a celebration of the mischief, innocence and energy of youth derived from Shakespeare's `A Midsummer Night's Dream` (See Bonhams, March 23rd 2004, lot 76)

Provenance: London, Ernest Brown & Phillips (The Leicester Galleries), label verso.

Draper's most productive period began in 1894. He focused mainly on mythological themes from ancient Greece. His painting The Lament for Icarus (1898) won the gold medal at the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1900 and was later bought for the Tate Gallery by the Chantrey Trustees. He was also responsible for the decoration of the ceiling of the Drapers' Hall in the City of London.