Wednesday, September 17, 2025

737. Robert Ross as Author

This year, The Rivendale Press published another volume in the Questing Collector Series, the tenth volume to date: Robert Ross as Author by Michael Seeney, consisting of an introduction, a checklist and three appendices.

Michael Seeney, Robert Ross as Author
(The Rivendale Press, 2025)

Many aspects of his life have been covered in the three biographies published to date: Robert Ross, Friend of Friends by Margery Ross (1952), Wilde's Devoted Friend: a Life of Robert Ross 1869-1918 by Maureen Borland (1990), and Robbie Ross. Oscar Wilde's True Love by Jonathan Fryer (2000). They portray him as a friend and lover, and it is abundantly clear that Ross, as Wilde's friend, played a decisive role in his life, but as a result, he remains underexposed as an n independent personality. One of the ephemeral aspects of his life is an incessant stream of publications, so many of which were published anonymously that they remained invisible for a long time and could not be attributed to him.

The checklist records no fewer than 420 publications, 42 of which appeared between 1892 and 1905. Most articles were published between 1905 and 1918 (the year of his death). On average, he published around thirty articles per year. More than half of these were published in The Morning Post between 1908 and 1914.

The introduction covers his various publication channels, starting with The Gadfly and The Granta, and follows Ross's career as an author chronologically from The Saturday Review and The Academy to The Morning Post, The Bystander and The Burlington Magazine. Ross published reviews, satire and articles in other periodicals as well, such as Cornhill Magazine, The Times and La Revue politique et littéraire. 

While the introduction is arranged chronologically, the bibliography is not. It is based on the classification used in literary bibliographies, such as Donald Gallup's bibliography of the work of T.S. Eliot: first the publications in book form, followed by contributions to books, and then articles in periodicals. These are arranged alphabetically by journal title, except at the end, where there is a section for miscellaneous items: 'Contributions to other periodicals'. 

This does not really do justice to the journalist and critic Ross; he is treated as an author of books, which he was not. He was primarily a kind of columnist who could afford to take enormous liberties in his articles. A chronological list (with a good index) would be more obvious for making the work easy to navigate.

As a reader of bibliographies, I would also have liked to see each entry accompanied by a brief summary of the subject and Ross's opinion – now there are only very brief additions such as 'review' or 'story'. Of course, that would have doubled the size, but that space would have been made available by omitting the three examples of his writing (the three appendices): perhaps it is time for a more extensive selection of his pieces in a separate publication?

Nevertheless, this is an indispensable book for anyone who has at least one of the biographical studies on their bookshelf, and I hope that it will find its way into university libraries. Despite the current state of digitisation of periodicals, compiling such an overview is still a hellish task.

Michael Seeney, Robert Ross as Author 
Published by The Rivendale Press
Paperback with marbled paper wrappers: 40 numbered copies only
14.8 x 21.0 cm., 68 pp., 3 black and white illustrations.
ISBN 978 1 904201 458
£20.00 / $25.00

Wednesday, September 10, 2025

736. In an Orchard. (The Sequel)

Last week's blog about two studies for Charles Shannon's decorative painting consisting of three panels elicited a response from Michael Seeney, Oscar Wilde scholar and collector, drawing my attention to yet another study for 'Autumn'. He kindly offered to share an image of this study from his collection.

Charles Shannon, study for 'Autumn'
[Collection of Michael Seeney]

The drawing is initialled CS on the right below the drawing and titled by Shannon in the bottom left corner.

A woman sits with her knees slightly raised, leaning against a tree or wall (which is not drawn). This could have been one of the drawings sold at auction in 1939. With each drawing we get a little closer to the (unillustrated) original painting.

Wednesday, September 3, 2025

735. In an Orchard

Charles Shannon explored a limited number of subjects for his paintings, as he did for his lithographs. Street scenes were not among them, nor were seascapes. Many of his scenes are set in the bathroom, on the beach, or in an orchard. Not all of his works have survived and there are studies that can not be connected to any finished painting.

An orchard drawing can be found in the collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam. It is not a study for 'The Apple Gatherers' (1900, Ashmolean Museum), 'The Romantic Landscape' (1904) or 'The Vintage' (1910), and is said to be a study for 'Autumn'.

Another study for 'Autumn' was sold at auction in November 2004 (Christie's, London). Actually, the leaf contained two drawings, a study for 'Autumn' (recto) and a study of a reclining figure (verso). The former was signed with initials and titled 'Autumn', pencil and brown wash, 39.5 x 21.5 cm.

Charles Shannon, study for 'Autumn'
[Christie's, London, 2004]

The catalogue description included the following:

This drawing is a study for Autumn (private collection), a large decorative painting consisting of three panels, each measuring 4 by 6 feet, that Shannon executed about 1911. The study relates to the third panel, a scene of harvesting, but in the painting the foremost girl has been changed to a young man holding a sickle.


Between this sketch and the final decorative panel, many other sketches will have followed, especially with such a major change. One of the drawings that is closer to the final stage is in the collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.

Charles Shannon, study for 'Autumn' (1913)
[Rijksmuseum Amsterdam: RP-T-1950-260
]

However, the Rijksmuseum catalogue describes the drawings as being a sketch for 'the left panel of that name'. Confusing! I have never seen an image of these panels. 

This drawing in red, black and white chalk, 43.0 x 27.8 cm, is dated 1913. It depicts a woman embracing a man leaning against a tree with a sickle; behind them is a ladder and in the foreground a seated child. The title 'Autumn' is on the verso.

'Five Studies for "Autumn"', in pencil, pen sanguine and chalks, were sold after Shannon had died. See the Catalogue of Fine Paintings by Old Masters and Modern Drawings (London, Sotheby’s, 14 June 1939, p. 4, no. 13). These were sold for £5 5s to Gerald Reitlinger (1900-1978).

The Rijksmuseum acquired the drawing in 1950.