Jacob Kramer (1892–1962) – Signed Pastel Portrait of a Young Man, 1933

A commanding and intimate portrait, executed in pastel on paper and signed and dated 1933. This is a substantial work that shows Kramer at the height of his powers as a draughtsman.

The Work

The subject, the Reverend Norman Wilkinson, is a young man in strict profile, with his gaze cast downward. The chiaroscuro, a device Kramer used with particular force in his pastel work, lends the portrait an almost cinematic intensity.

About Jacob Kramer

Born in Ukraine in 1892, Kramer arrived in Leeds as a child and went on to study at the Slade, where he came into the orbit of Augustus John and the Vorticist circle around Wyndham Lewis and David Bomberg. He later became the central figure of Leeds artistic life and his work is held in the collections of Leeds City Art Gallery, the Tate and the National Portrait Gallery. His portraits, of rabbis, workers, artists and sitters from across the social spectrum, constitute one of the most distinctive bodies of figurative work in twentieth-century British art.

Condition & Frame

The pastel itself is unfaded and in good condition. There is minor crumpling to the bottom right corner and a small piece of debris between the glass and the paper near the sitter's forehead – both trivial for a work of this age and medium. Presented in a substantial distressed Modern British gilt frame that appears contemporary with the work and suits it handsomely.

Dimensions

Sheet: 52.2 x 41.8 cm 

Framed: approximately 65.25 x 55.5 cm

Barnes Fine Art