A recently rediscovered work by Sir George Clausen (1852-1944), titled The Peasant Girl of Quimperlé ‚will lead Bonhams’ September 27 sale of 19th century European, Victorian & British Impressionist paintings.
Signed and dated 1882, the 14 x 13in (36 x 33cm) oil on canvas last sold in 1922 and has passed by descent since then. The subject – the head of a French peasant girl – reflects the artist’s long preoccupation with the rural way of life and the threat he felt this tradition faced by mechanisation.
It is estimated at £60,000-80,000.
Another work by Clausen, Noon in the Hayfield, will lead Bonhams’ sale estimated at £500,000-800,000. The painting was completed in 1897-8, seven years after Clausen had started work on the canvas.