Dimensions: support: 610 x 508 mm
Copyright: © Estate of Stanley Spencer | CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Photo: Tate
Editor: Sir Stanley Spencer’s portrait "Daphne" is full of curious details - the lace, the floral patterns, even the china in the background. She's looking right at us. What do you see in this piece? Curator: It’s funny, isn’t it? The formality of the hat almost clashes with her rather direct gaze. It’s like Spencer’s inviting us into an intimate moment, yet she's somewhat shielded. Do you feel that tension? Editor: Yes, I do. She seems present but distant. Curator: Exactly! It’s that push and pull, that blend of the everyday and the slightly surreal, that makes Spencer so compelling, don’t you think? It's like a dream half-remembered. Editor: I hadn't thought of it that way. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure!
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tate about 2 months ago
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Daphne Charlton was a student at the Slade School of Art in London, as was Stanley Spencer, and her husband George taught there. The Charltons were introduced to Spencer in 1939 and from then on he often visited them at their Hampstead home. All three went on a painting holiday together in the summer of 1939 to Leonard Stanley, a remote village in Gloucestershire. During this stay Daphne Charlton painted Spencer's portrait. In April 1940, back in London, she sat for this portrait every day for about two to three weeks. The hat she wears was bought for three guineas in a shop in Bond Street in December 1939, especially for the sittings. Spencer painted another portrait of her without her hat. Gallery label, September 2004
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