McEvoy had studied at the Slade School of Fine Art on the recommendation of James Abbott McNeill Whistler, and soon after established himself as a talented painter of portraits and interior scenes. This 'Hollywood' look, with his glamourous subjects lit from below as if caught mid-speech on stage, is what he soon became best known for. McEvoy would illuminate his subject using electric lights, switching between different coloured bulbs until he reached the level and colour of light he desired. His patrons - typically young, well-known beauties - were dazzled not only by his remarkable ability to capture their character, but also his working methods, which one spectator described as an 'awe-inspiring sight'. Divine People is the first major written study of McEvoy's life and work and aims to firmly place this long-neglected artist back into the canon of 20th-century British art.Īmbrose McEvoy (1877-1927) was a household name by 1915, with prominent socialites and debutantes vying for sittings in his Grosvenor Road studio. Despite his success, when McEvoy died unexpectedly at the peak of his career in 1927, his name was soon forgotten. His quick, confident style of painting drew the attention of many leading society figures, from Winston Churchill to Lady Diana Cooper, and in particular subjects who craved something beyond a simple 'likeness' in paint. Nominated for the William MB Berger Prize for British Art History 2020.Īmbrose McEvoy was one of the most modern and daring English society portrait painters of the early 20th century.

Divine People by Erik Akers-Douglas