Louis Osman (1914-1996)
West Facade of Staunton Harold Church, Leicestershire
Pencil, pen, watercolour, &c.
152 x 77 cm
Provenance: artist’s studio sale
A charming view of the west facade of Staunton Harold Church, drawn by the architect Louis Osman and signed in red ink at the lower right-hand corner. Parts of the drawing are adorned with watercolour; notable is the armorial detailing above the doors, which is vibrantly rendered in red, blue, and gold. The church, known as the Chapel of the Holy Trinity and a part of the Staunton Harold estate, was built in 1653 in a late expression of Gothic taste. It was commissioned by Sir Robert Shirley, one of a family of Anglicans and Royalists; on this facade, the Shirley coat of arms is impaled with that of Katherine Okeover, whom Sir Robert had married in 1646. A certain connection might be made between the ornate, luxuriant design of the chapel, and Sir Robert’s imprisonment under the austere regime of Oliver Cromwell. The drawing is undated, but probably dates to circa the 1950s or 1960s.
Condition: good, with some handling marks, a water stain at the upper right-hand corner, and some damage to the lower right-hand corner (which does not affect the signature).
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