STUDY FOR ‘ROMANS AT THE PONT DU GARD’

A lovely little sketch by the renowned British artist John Ward, who painted many celebrities and members of the Royal Family, and gave sketching lessons to King Charles.  He was brought up in Hereford and attended art school there where he was taught very traditionally, with a strong grounding in draughtsmanship, a skill he valued highly and which is evident in all his work.  He was not impressed by artists who did not share his way of thinking; in 1997 he was one of four artists who resigned from the Royal Academy on account of the Sensation exhibition of young British artists, including Hirst and Tracey Emin: "They've been invited into Burlington House and what have they done? I'll tell you. They've taken advantage of us and written 'bum' on our walls, and they call it art."

Medium: Pencil and chalk

Signed: Signed and bears old label verso

Size: 29 x 19cm

Provenance: The Maas Gallery, John Ward Exhibition, 1985