A selection of books from Sir William Orpen’s bookshelf, all signed by him or to him as a gift.
‘A Dictionary of Terms in Art’ by F W Fairholt, FSA. which was presented to Orpen as a prize by the Metropolitan School of Art, Dublin in 1893 (now the NCAD).
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‘A Man in the Zoo’ by David Garnett, illustrated with original woodcuts by R.A. Garnett. Humorously signed – ‘William Orpen, his book 1924’.
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Albrecht Dürer by Lina Eckenstein. Dürer was a German painter (1471-1528). Eckenstein was a British historian & philosopher (1857- 1931). This book is inscribed from Orpen’s brother Mossy, Christmas 1902.
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‘A Sportsman’s Sketches’ by Ivan Turgenev (his first major publication) signed by George Moore to William Orpen 1906.
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‘Antic Hay’ by Aldous Huxley (1894-1963), is a comic novel published in 1923. This one is signed – William Orpen, Paris, February 1924.
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‘Under Western Eyes’ a novel by Joseph Conrad, set in St. Petersburg, Russia, and Geneva, Switzerland. Joseph Conrad (1857-1924) was a Polish/British writer. Signed – William Orpen 1911.
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‘She Must Go’ by David Garnett (1892-1981). This is the 2nd book by Garnett on Orpen’s shelf, see book 5 below. This one is signed – William Orpen 1929.
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‘Insurrections’ by James Stephens (1858 – 1950) Irish novelist and poet. A founding member of what was later to become The Irish Republican Brotherhood. I can’t make out the signature of who gave the book to Orpen, but it has been suggested that it matches the handwriting of Grace Gifford Plunkett.
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‘Later Poems’ by Alice Maynell (1847-1922). A British writer, poet and suffragist. She was twice considered for the Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom. This one is signed – Orpen.
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‘Little Mexican‘ by Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) an English writer and philosopher who was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature nine times. This one is signed – William Orpen 1926.
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‘Overlooked’ by Maurice Baring OBE (1874-1945) is book 13 from Sir William Orpen’s collection. Baring was a writer & poet, he served in WW1. Signed – William Orpen 1923.
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Pierre Puvis de Chavannes (1824-1898) from Lyon. Famous for mural painting, known as the painter for France. Co-founder & President of Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. This book is signed – To Orpen from Hugh Lane 1915 (the year Lane died).
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‘Reminiscences of Impressionist Painters’ by George Moore. A signed gift from Hugh P. Lane to William Orpen (1916). Published by Maunsel & Co., Ltd, Dublin.
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‘The Trespasser‘, a 1912 novel by D. H. Lawrence. Set mostly on the Isle of Wight. This one is signed with Orpen’s monogram 1916 Kensington Barracks where he worked prior to being dispatched to France as an official war artist.
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‘The House of Gentlefolk’ by Ivan Turgenev (translated from Russian by Constance Garnett). Signed – William Orpen 1906.
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‘Young Men in Love’ by Michael Arlen (1895-1956) born Dikran Kouyoumdjian in Rousse, Bulgaria. This one is signed ‘To Orps from Michael’ (the author) and includes Orpen’s monogram 1927.
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‘Ethan Frome’ by Edith Wharton, this one is signed with Orpen’s monogram 1913.
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Self Portrait by William Orpen 1903.
Post by Dominic Lee, Orpen Research Archives.
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