John Armstrong A.R.A. (1893-1973)

Cophetua and the Beggarmaid is an important work in Armstrong's body of work. It is unusual for the artist not to have signed or dated a work of this magnitude. The reasoning for why the painting never seems to have been exhibited until his death adds to the mystery around not just the title but also the symbolism.
Andrew Lambirth writes about the present work at length whilst comparing Armstrong's symbolism to René Magritte,'A very strange painting, with no easily decipherable symbolism ... with a bewildering clarity of statement ... he wanted to convey his unease at the world's direction ... communication of concern was his aim' (A. Lambirth, John Armstrong The Paintings, London, 2009, p. 117).

We are very grateful to Jonathan Gibbs for his assistance with cataloguing this lot and lot 35.