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Ivy Gordon-Lennox
1915
(Another seen on the JSSGallery website)

 Portrait of a Lady
(the Hon. Ivy Gordon-Lennox (1887-1982))
Philip Alexius de Laszlo -- British painter (1869-1937)
1915
Private collection
Oil on canvas 
65.7 x 53.3 cm (25¾ x 21 in) 
Jpg: Friend of the JSS Gallery


(Editor's Note - Radu Bogdan, in a letter further below dated 8/23/2002 -- which I think is missdated by me, thought the identity of the sitter was HSH princess Elisabeth Comanesco de Brancovan. Christopher, in a letter after Radu's,  refers to the former)

From: Christopher Wentworth-Stanley
cat al  ogue@delaszlo.com
Date: Wed, 8 Jun 2005

Dear Mr Bogdan,

(. . .) The lady [above] is, in fact, the Hon. Ivy Gordon-Lennox (1887-1982) and the portrait is one of three known to have been painted in 1915 on the occasion of her marriage to the Marquess of Titchfield, the son and heir of de László's great patron in England, the 6th Duke of Portland. Another of these portraits can already be seen on the JSSGallery website and I have attached a third, showing the sitter in her wedding veil (please, not for publication).

(
Editor's Note - a black and white image remarkably similar in likeness wearing a wedding dress was attached [closed records])

(. . .) It is with great reluctance that I must contradict your convincing and authoritative identification of the 'Portrait of a Lady' by Philip de László illustrated on the JSSGallery website as Princess Elisabeth Comanesco de Brancovan (. . .)

If your hear of any other portraits by Philip de László, identified or not, which may not have been included already in the Catalogue Raisonné or if Sandra de Laszlo or I can be of any assistance in helping to identify portraits in the future, please do contact us.  With best wishes,

Yours sincerely,

Christopher Wentworth-Stanley
European Editor, The Catalogue Raisonné of Works by Philip de László



From: 
Radu Bogdan
radu_  zone@yahoo.fr  
8/23/2002 ? (prior to Christopher's letter)

Dear Madam,

  
As a Roumanian genealogist I can state that the person in this painting [Portrait of a Lady
] is HSH princess Elisabeth Comanesco de Brancovan (1897-1983), née countess de Linche de Moissac-Merisesco in a Franco-Roumanian family. Through her marriage to HSH prince Constantine IX Comanesco de Brancovan, she became a cousin of Countess Anna de Noailles (born princess Bassaraba de Brancovan) and a relative of Lady Margot Asquith (both latter portrayed by de Laszlo), as well as of princess Marthe Bibesco (the writer, 1886-1973).
 
The Comanesco de Brancovan family's historical archives mention that HSH princess Elisabeth was portrayed by Philip de Laszlo, most probably in the 1920s. Even though a part of the archives (illegally) became the property of the Roumanian Academy in Bucharest after the Communists' arrival in 1945, the present princely family Comanesco de Brancovan kept the souvenir of the existence of such a portray (that was never brought in Roumania). Misfortunately, I cannot produce a photo of princess Elisabeth for the simple reason that the few left are to be found now in the Roumanian Academy archives, and I'm not allowed to take anything from there, but I saw photos of princess Elisabeth and the similarity with the person in the painting is absolutely striking, up to being the same personage.
 
If you need any information regarding the life of princess Elisabeth Comanesco de Brancovan, née countess de Linche de Moissac (-Merisesco) you can write me an email anytime at this address.  
 
 Hoping to hear from you,
 Kindest regards,
  
 Radu Bogdan
 Cluj-Napoca, Roumania

Notes 
Special thanks to Radu Bogdan, a friend of the JSS Gallery, and Christopher Wentworth-Stanley for their individual input.

From: Christies  
8/23/2002 

Sale Title TWENTIETH CENTURY BRITISH ART 
Location London, South Kensington Sale Date Sep 05, 2002, Lot Number 508 Sale Number 9448 

Lot Title Portrait of a Lady 

Estimate 5,000 - 7,000 British pounds (did not sell)

This painting is to be included in the Hon. 
Sandra de Laszlo's forthcoming monograph on the Artist. 

 



 


By:  Natasha Wallace
Copyright 1998-2005 all rights reserved
Created 8/23/2002