SIR WILLIAM REID DICK (1878-1961) §
'OUR LADY OF LIVERPOOL, QUEEN OF THE SEA', 1933
Estimate: £2,000 - £3,000
Auction: Day One | Lots 1 to 252 | Wednesday 16th April from 10am
Description
patinated plaster, signed and dated to the base REID DICK/ 1933
Dimensions
74cm high
Provenance
Provenance: Sir William Reid Dick and by family descent
Footnote
Literature: Wardleworth D. William Reid Dick Sculptor, Routledge 2013, pp.128-129
In 1929, Sir Edwin Lutyens was commissioned to design a grand Roman Catholic cathedral in Liverpool, intended to rival St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. His design featured an enormous structure with a 510-foot-high dome. Construction began in 1933 but was interrupted by World War II and later abandoned due to rising costs, leaving only the crypt completed.
As part of the project, Lutyens commissioned the sculptor Sir William Reid Dick to create Our Lady of Liverpool, Queen of the Sea. He requested an eight-foot-high statue, stating, “Our Lady must be crowned and the sea must be represented.” After the Church authorities had reviewed the statue, Lutyens wrote to Sir William, “My dear Dick, your Madonna has been approved with acclamation.” The plaster reduction, with its distinctive maritime theme, was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1933. Two casts were made—one was given to the Liverpool Roman Catholic Cathedral, and the other remained with the artist’s family, the current lot.