Sir John Lavery, R.A., R.S.A., R.H.A. (1856-1941)

Mary Auras was introduced to Lavery by August Neven du Mont at Unter den Linden in 1901-2. She was sixteen and acted as a model and companion for Lavery's ten-year-old daughter, Eileen. Auras appears in some of Lavery's most famous works and was the toast of Paris when Printemps (Musee d'Orsay) was sold to the French government in 1904 (see K. McConkey, John Lavery - A Painter and His World, 2010, p. 85). She went with Lavery to Tangier where she met Nigel d'Albini Black-Hawkins, an ex-officer, and after their marriage lived in the city.

We are very grateful to Professor Kenneth McConkey for preparing this catalogue entry.