10th Jun, 2026 12:00
Live Sale: Fine Paintings, Works on Paper and Sculpture June 2026
36
⊕ LEONARD FRENCH (AUSTRALIAN 1928-2017)
PORTRAIT OF BORIS GODUNOV
signed, titled and dated 25th Oct 1982 / An attempt to show the duality / of the strange personality of Boris Gudunov / the mask like royal costumed Tzar / in front of the darker, sinister image / of the Mongolian peasant / Leonard French on a label on the reverse
enamel, oil and gold leaf on hessian covered board
88 x 72cm; 34 1/2 x 28 1/4in
97 x 82.5cm; 38 x 32 1/2in (framed)
Property from a Private Collection, Surrey
Provenance
Sir Albert and Lady Robinson, London (purchased from the artist in Melbourne in the late 1980s)
Thence by descent to the present owner, daughter of Lady Robinson
Boris Godunov (1552-1605) was the de facto regent of Russia (1585-1598) and then Tsar (1598-1605) during the 'Time of Troubles', a period of political crisis which would lead to the establishment of the Romanov dynasty in 1617. Born to a landowning family of Tatar origin, Godunov rose to power through strategic marriages and connections. He is probably best known as the ruthless ill-fated tyrant of Modest Mussorgsky's eponymous opera of 1873, who after being crowned Tsar grapples with his part in the murder of the rightful heir to the throne, Dmitriy.
Raised in a working class family in the Melbourne industrial suburb of Brunswick during the years of the Great Depression, French left school at an early age and became an apprentice signwriter, a training that explains the unconventional techniques and materials that he later used in his art. As in the present work, his built up, well crafted enamel surfaces with professionally applied areas of gold leaf is unique in the context of Australian painting.
French discovered the art of Fernand Léger during his first trip abroad in 1950, visiting the retrospective on the French painter at the Tate Gallery in London. For French, the impact of Léger went considerably beyond a stylistic influence: what appealed to him was the whole philosophy of art into life, of monumental art within architecture, and made relevant and accessible to the working masses. French frequently used literary sources as inspiration such as the writings of Homer or James Joyce, and merged them into a personal heroic vision. The present representation of Godunov not only reflects the grand tradition of Russian icons but also the influence of Byzantine art and Celtic iconography on his work, whilst the clarity of design belies his abiding interest in stained glass for which he was celebrated.
Sold for £3,600
PORTRAIT OF BORIS GODUNOV
signed, titled and dated 25th Oct 1982 / An attempt to show the duality / of the strange personality of Boris Gudunov / the mask like royal costumed Tzar / in front of the darker, sinister image / of the Mongolian peasant / Leonard French on a label on the reverse
enamel, oil and gold leaf on hessian covered board
88 x 72cm; 34 1/2 x 28 1/4in
97 x 82.5cm; 38 x 32 1/2in (framed)
Property from a Private Collection, Surrey
Provenance
Sir Albert and Lady Robinson, London (purchased from the artist in Melbourne in the late 1980s)
Thence by descent to the present owner, daughter of Lady Robinson
Boris Godunov (1552-1605) was the de facto regent of Russia (1585-1598) and then Tsar (1598-1605) during the 'Time of Troubles', a period of political crisis which would lead to the establishment of the Romanov dynasty in 1617. Born to a landowning family of Tatar origin, Godunov rose to power through strategic marriages and connections. He is probably best known as the ruthless ill-fated tyrant of Modest Mussorgsky's eponymous opera of 1873, who after being crowned Tsar grapples with his part in the murder of the rightful heir to the throne, Dmitriy.
Raised in a working class family in the Melbourne industrial suburb of Brunswick during the years of the Great Depression, French left school at an early age and became an apprentice signwriter, a training that explains the unconventional techniques and materials that he later used in his art. As in the present work, his built up, well crafted enamel surfaces with professionally applied areas of gold leaf is unique in the context of Australian painting.
French discovered the art of Fernand Léger during his first trip abroad in 1950, visiting the retrospective on the French painter at the Tate Gallery in London. For French, the impact of Léger went considerably beyond a stylistic influence: what appealed to him was the whole philosophy of art into life, of monumental art within architecture, and made relevant and accessible to the working masses. French frequently used literary sources as inspiration such as the writings of Homer or James Joyce, and merged them into a personal heroic vision. The present representation of Godunov not only reflects the grand tradition of Russian icons but also the influence of Byzantine art and Celtic iconography on his work, whilst the clarity of design belies his abiding interest in stained glass for which he was celebrated.
Auction: Live Sale: Fine Paintings, Works on Paper and Sculpture June 2026, 10th Jun, 2026
L.S. Lowry’s expansive Figures on a Beach (lot 39) is the lead painting in our June sale that ranges from the Old Masters to Modern British and post-War & Contemporary. Many of the works have been in the same collection for decades; a number have fascinating stories attached.
The first seven lots of Dutch and Flemish Old Masters are from the collection of Paul Wertheimer. Acquired almost hundred years ago, Wertheimer brought the works to England when he fled Germany in 1938. Leading the group are 17th century panels attributed to Moses van Uyttenbroeck and Lucas van Uden, the latter a reduced copy of Rubens’ original in the Royal Collection (lots 1 & 4). Another early panel, a portrait of Cornelisz. Van Beresteyn, is by a follower of Michiel Jansz. van Miereveld (lot 9).
Works by fellow artists and friends Augustus John and Edgar Augustus ‘Loben’ Slade (lots 20-25) feature John’s early portrait of Loben and five works on paper by the lesser known Slade, nephew of the founder of the Slade School of Art, one of which is a watercolour of Jessie McNeill, John’s model, muse and mistress.
Also in the sale are seven works by Australian artists, including Jeffrey Smart, William Blamire Young and Leonard French, all from a private collection in Surrey (lots 30-36), and ten paintings from a Cheshire Collection that features the work of Helen Bradley, Edouard Cortes and Marcel Dyf together with bracing coastal views by Campbell Archibald Mellon (lots 40-48).
A small and fascinating work on paper is by Paul Nash. It captures the view of Harry Rocks off Ballard Down from Nash's flat in Swanage where he was living in the mid-1930s and which he incorporated into his Surrealist work ahead of the major Surrealist exhibition in London of 1936 (lot 27).
Beside the Lowry beach scene, other post-War works include an important early sculpture by James Tower (lot 52), a leading sculptor-ceramicist of his generation. Other post-War abstract works include examples by Frank Avray Wilson, James Hull and Etienne Beothy (lots 50, 51, 55 & 57).
For more information please contact us | pictures@olympiaauctions.com | +44 (0)20 7806 5541
Viewing
PUBLIC EXHIBITION:
Sunday 7th June: 12pm - 4pm
Monday 8th June: 10am - 8pm (Drinks 5 - 8pm)
Tuesday 9th June: 10am - 5pm
