Louis Osman
Lumley Castle – sketch IV
Pen, ink, pencil and coloured wash
62 x 48 cm
Louis Osman (30 January 1914 – 11 April 1996) was an architect, artist, goldsmith, silversmith and medallist. Few people matched his creations as a goldsmith, and consequently he was chosen to make the crown for the Investiture of the Prince of Wales in 1968. Many of his other works are in public collections in the UK and worldwide.
After Hele’s school in Exeter he studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture – part of University College London – from 1931. Also attending the Slade, he left the Bartlett being awarded the top first, which brings with it the Donaldson Medal of the RIBA.
Following the war he was busy as an architect, works including for Westminster Abbey, and Lincoln, Exeterm, Ely and Lichfield Cathedrals. Staunton Harold Church in Ashby de la Zouch for the National Trust, and of course his own folly, the Grade I listed Elizabethan manor house, Canons Ashby in Northamptonshire – which was given to the National Trust in 1981 when Osman was not able to keep the tenancy any longer.
These architectural sketches showcase Osman’s ideas for the refit of Lumley Castle. Located in the North-East of England, Lumley Castle was originally built in 1389 and today is a four star hotel and wedding venue that belongs to the Earl of Scarborough. Thomas Lumley was an eighteenth century soldier and statesman, and the third Earl of Scarborough.
Condition: Very good; on a rich dark-green paper which has not really shown up in the photographs, nor have the extensive pencil sketches
Provenance: From the artist’s estate.
