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Gladys Cooper’s portrait is
listed in Orpen’s Studio
records in 1925. It is noted
as selling for £500 to the
sitter. This was a reduced
fee, a sign of his affection
for her and a gesture,
Arnold suggests, he
bestowed on others he
favoured such as actress
Madge Kendal who
became a family friend.6
However, Orpen was
shrewd enough to retain
the copyright on the
image, later reproduced
as the frontispiece for the
sitter’s autobiography.7
Almost ten years after the
publication, Cooper
relocated to Hollywood
and transitioned to the
silver screen. She was
thrice nominated for an
Academy Award and is
best-known for her roles in
Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca and My Fair Lady. In 1967 she became Dame Gladys Cooper DBE.
The present painting remained in the collection of the sitter’s family - unseen in the public domain since 1926
– until it sold privately in 2001.
€80,000-€120,000 (£57,550-£86,330 approx.)
This work will be among the highlights on view at Whyte’s Belfast preview, James Wray Gallery from 6pm to 8pm Thursday 14 May and
10am to 3pm on Friday 15 May.
1 Cooper,Gladys,GladysCooper,Hutchinson&Co.,London,1930,p.168
2 Ibid.,pp.264,265
3 Ibid., p.193: “Miss Gladys Cooper makes us realise the aloofness of Peter from this world. There is more hard-hearted
cruelty and defiance, and yet the children love her and laugh at her.”
4 Arnold,Bruce,OrpenMirrortoanAge,JonathanCape,London,1981,p.409
5 ‘Paintings Men’s Hearts’, Weekly Dispatch, January 28, 1923
6 Arnold,Bruce,OrpenMirrortoanAge,JonathanCape,London,1981,p.416
7 Ibid.,p.417
IMPORTANT IRISH ART ·
25 MAY 2015 AT 6PM