This is a silverpoint drawing on gray-toned ground by William T. Ayton, inspired by the Work of
Simeon Solomon:
Sleep by William T. Ayton, 2009. Silverpoint drawing on toned card, 9" x 7". Highlighted with white pastel pencil. WTA083. Created today.
Simeon Solomon (see link above) was a British artist working in the mid-late 19th century. Inspired by the Pre-Raphaelites, his work had an otherworldly air, & strong erotic undertones (& overtones.) His burgeoning career was cut short due to his arrest in a public convenience, where he was apprehended with another man. After this, he was shunned by polite society & was eventually forced into the workhouse, where he died penniless. However, he never stopped drawing & creating art, usually on cheap, scavenged materials, such as chalk & cardboard. For decades he continued to explore his eternal themes, such as the one above, which I have appropriated in a little homage to a potentially great artist who lost everything except his talent.
Price available on request. Please leave a message on this post, or email "info" "at symbol" "ayton.net". Thanks.
