Initialed lower left

Francis Marshall (American, 1901-1980) Love And Linda paperback cover, 1976 Gouache and pencil on board 18-3/4 x 9-3/4 inches (47.6 x 24.8 cm) (sight) Initialed lower left The present work is published on the cover of Love And Linda by Barbara Cartland (Pyramid, 1976) and a copy of the book accompanies the lot. Francis Marshall was a celebrated fashion illustrator of the mid-20th century and was Barbara Cartland's favored cover artist from the 1950s until his death in 1980. As recounted by Cartland's son, Jonathan Miller, "My mother loved Francis' covers as they brought so much life and glamour to her romances as well as grace and sophistication. It was always said that a Francis Marshall painting could be recognized at 25 yards because of its unique style...He claimed that of all the people he worked for he enjoyed my mother the most. He read every book from cover to cover and made sure that the heroines' dresses were of the correct fashion of the period of the book...as fashion changes so frequently. Francis and my mother worked so closely together over so many years that it was a great shock to her when he died unexpectedly and indeed she was annoyed with him for leaving her as she had then to find another artist [who] would never be as good or as dedicated as Francis! We have a huge and unique collection of cover illustrations by various artists at my mother's home, Camfield Place...But the best, the most captivating, the most romantic and the most inspiring are by the greatest fashion artist of the twentieth century, Francis Marshall himself." (Miller, Jonathan, www.BarbaraCartland.com, June 8, 2018) HID12401132022 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

Framed under acrylic. Not examined out of frame. Scattered stains in the upper half of the composition. Framed Dimensions 27 X 18 Inches