NORMAN HUTCHINSON
“Josephine Beauharnais”
A very artistic antique watercolour painting by Norman Hutchinson (1932-2010) of a reclining nude lady. The subject is a lady named Josephine Beauharnais and is a lovely study of the female figure when the bloom of youth has passed. A label on the reverse of the painting states her lifetime to be from 1763-1814.
Another examples of a work by this artist is included at the end of the photos.
Frame: Painting is glazed and presented in a gilt wooden frame with cream mount.
Provenance: Sackville Galleries (label verso). Gifted from “Nana” to her friend Dan in May 2000 (label verso)
Condition: Painting and frame are both in very good condition.
Measurements: Painting measures 36 x 12cm and the overall frames 55 x 31cm.
Biography: Norman Douglas Hutchinson (1932–2010) was a British Royal painter, noted for his 1988 painting of Queen Elizabeth II.
Hutchinson was born in Calcutta, India in 1932, the illegitimate son of Earl Eric Douglas, of Scottish Marquess of Queensberry lineage, and an Anglo-Indian maid, Florence. He grew up in an orphanage, Dr. Graham’s Homes in Kalimpong. One of the orphanage’s patrons, Lady Mountbatten, noted his artistic talent and encouraged him through school and art college. Hutchinson moved to London with his wife Gloria in 1959, where they started a successful design company.
As a painter, Hutchinson’s works also include portraits of Nehru, Prince Philip and Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.
Hutchinson died on the evening of 24 June 2010 at his home in Marrakech.