Maurice Greiffenhagen 1904 Mixed Media Illustration for "The Grey Cloak"
Item Details
Maurice Greiffenhagen (British; 1862-1931)
Untitled, 1904
Mixed Media Illustration for The Grey Cloak, Chapter XXIII
14.5’ W x 21.25’ H
A mixed media illustration on paperboard for Harold MacGrath’s The Grey Cloak (1903) by British portraitist and illustrator Maurice Greiffenhagen (1862–1931), created in 1904. Comprised of charcoal, ink wash, and gouache, this grisaille composition features a lively scene of two men dueling with rapiers in an interior living space with a fireplace in the background. The composition exhibits dramatic tenebrism with the illuminated figures emerging from the shadows of the dimly lit space. Handwritten inscriptions to the lower margin indicate that the illustration was executed for chapter 23 of The Grey Cloak, with an excerpt that reads ‘It was the end – He shut his eyes’. The scene depicted illustrates a duel between Monsieur D’Hérouville and the marquis that results in the death of the marquis. In 1904, The Grey Cloak was serialized in the British newspaper The Sphere – one of several periodicals that published Maurice Greiffenhagen’s illustrations. The work is signed and dated to the lower left; it is presented under a glass panel and remains unframed.
Beginning in 1878, Greiffenhagen attended the Royal Academy of Arts where he acquired several awards. He was highly influenced by the Venetians and the Pre-Raphaelites, particularly the work of Dante Gabriel Rossetti. He is primarily recognized for his illustrations produced for numerous books, magazines, and periodicals, such as H. Rider Haggard’s novels, The Windsor Magazine, and The Illustrated London News, to name a few. His work has been collected by numerous institutions including the National Portrait Gallery, the Tate collection, and the Walker Art Gallery, among others.
Condition
- to fair; wear from age; wear includes stains and foxing throughout paper; small tears and wrinkles along edges of paper; toning throughout; scratches and smudges throughout acrylic glass.
Dimensions
- measurement of glass panel; paper measures approximately 14.5" W x 21.25" H.
Item #
18DCC083-146
