Mrs. Philip Astley (1936) | Philip Alexius de László | Painting Art Print | Wall Frame

In January 1935 Philip Astley commissioned a portrait of his wife, the actress Madeleine Carroll. He hoped to buy a blank canvas offered by de László at a charity auction in aid of the King George’s Pension Fund but was unsuccessful . He was introduced to the artist by their mutual friends, the Earl and Countess of Cromer, and de László agreed to paint the portrait of Carroll for £500 (ibid.). This was significantly less than his usual honorarium in the region of 900 guineas, which he charged for the three-quarter length portrait of Mrs Battine in 1935.

De László found a sympathetic sitter in the actress, remarking in his diary: 'I must get away from my usual portraits & she lents to it for movement & grace. To do something out of the ordinary she is a great help – intelligent & very sympathetic – I so much look forward to painting her' .

The artist made seven preparatory drawings and oil studies of the sitter in a deep red velvet gown before deciding on the pose. He wrote that he thought of Titian as he painted the velvet and felt he came close to achieving similar success with the fabric as the great Renaissance artist . After six sittings he noted in his diary on 7 May that he began work on the present portrait: 'Mrs Astley Mad[e]leine came & began an entirely new portrait of her – in spite of the first is much liked & had already 6 sittings. Had a splendid morning advanced the portrait practically to the same stage then [sic] the first as I was fully satisfied with the attitude etc. It will have more character – the movement more graceful – the lines better – lights & shadows warmer – richer & better divided – looking forward to continue tomorrow. It is a glorious feeling when I am satisfied with the conception the picture grows rapidly under my brush' (ibid., 7 May).

Captain Astley was delighted with the finished work: 'When I first wrote to you asking you if you would consent to paint a sketch of my wife, I never realized how generous you were going to be. As I told you, it has always been my ambition to have her painted by yourself, and I can only assure you that the portrait has exceeded my highest expectations! Apart from the likeness, and the lovely expression you have got into her face, the whole composition of the picture is an absolute masterpiece. As you can imagine, we are simply longing to see it hung in our own home, so that we can admire it continually! Madeleine always told me what a joy it was to sit for you, and she considers it a great privilege to have been numbered amongst your sitters' . It was photographed in colour and featured on the cover of Woman’s Journal in 1936.

 Our professionally remastered artwork comes in two variations:

1 .Matte: 12 X 18 inch high definition quality print -  300 gsm Matte Finish Art Paper Rolled in a Shipping Tube.

2. Frame: 14 X 20 inch finest quality photo frame -  Golden/Black Frame Finish.