[ Eileen Chandler, artist. ] Personal album relating to her portrait work, mainly in Hollywood, and including photographs of her portraits, and original photographs of children of celebrities.

Author: 
Eileen Chandler [ born Eileen Harris ] (1904-1993), English artist who worked in Los Angeles on portraits of Hollywood children [ Liza Minnelli; Mia Farrow; Deborah Kerr; Maureen O'Sullivan ]
Publication details: 
Undated [ 1950s and 1960s ]. Mainly relating to her time in Los Angeles, California.
£800.00
SKU: 18218

For more information about Chandler, see the appreciative obituary by Vy Reiners in the Independent, 5 February 1993, which describes how 'An article in the Illustrated London News launched her on a successful career that took her to Hollywood, painting sensitive, charming watercolour portraits of the children of the stars, and many of the stars themselves.' The present item contains 70 photographs in a 24 x 33 cm album. The photographs, ranging in size from 19 x 23 cm. downwards, are in good condition, with light signs of age and wear. One of them (14 x 9.5 cm.) has an original pencil drawing of a man's head on the reverse. Around eight of the photographs are in colour, the rest in black and white. 27 of them are still mounted in the album, while 42 have become detached, and are now loosely inserted. Also present is a 21 x 19 cm. negative of a portrait of Diana Ginsberg, as well as a makeshift booklet of 14 duplicated images, beginning with a view of Chandler's 'Gallery Studio on Sunset Boulevard'. The album itself begins with views inside the studio ('Gallery 8911 1/2 Sunset Boulevard - Hollywood'), including one of the artist painting her daughter Julia, and one of 'Sheridan Morley, Mrs Morley and Annabel, Gladys Cooper and E[ileen]. C[handler]' ('At Private View opened by Hedda Hopper'). There are five colour photographs of actual children (rather than their portraits by Chandler): 'Lisa Minelli [sic] in her play house', 'With Maureen O'Sullivan's daughter Prudence', 'Maureen O'Sullivan and children', 'Deborah Kerr's daugher Melanie, acting sleeping beauty' and 'With Deborah Kerr's daughter Melanie'. Among Chandler's portraits which are repoduced are ones of Anabel Morley, Bamber Gascoigne, Michael Wilding junr, Roddy Fleming ('Nephew of Ian Fleming'), Yehudi Menuhin, 'Zourab son of Prince Tchotoa', Sarah Liddell ('daughter of Alvar Lidell [sic] of the BBC'), Kate Fleming ('daughter of Celia Johnston'), 'Maria Farrow' [i.e. Mia Farrow], 'Martita | adopted Peruvian daughter of Joan Fontaine', and Joan Fontaine herself. There is also a photograph of a 'Centre Spread in Tatler 1946'. The latest dated item is from 1963.