William Orpen, Irish, 1878-1931
Title: Sunlight
Date: c.1925
Medium: Oil on panel
Dimensions:
50 x 61 cm
Signed: lower right: Orpen
Credit Line: Purchased, 1932
Object Number: NGI.957
Exhibition HistoryWilliam Orpen 1878-1931, A Centenary Exhibition, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 1 November -15 December 1978
Label TextOrpen painted this picture in his London studio. The informal setting adds to the intimacy of the scene. A model sits on a sofa and extends her leg as she either removes or puts on a stocking. The green band on her arm is a roll garter, a type of garter that became popular with fashionable young women during the 1920s. On the wall hangs a painting of the Seine at Argenteuil by Monet, which Orpen owned at this time. Bright sunlight falls through the window and creates strong patches of light and shade on the woman’s body, the furnishings, and the Monet painting.