CLARE LEIGHTON (ENGLISH/AMERICAN 1898-1989) §
THREE CHRISTMAS CARDS
Estimate: £300 - £500
Auction: 25 June 2025 from 10:00 BST
Description
Workhorses, Wood engraving, signed in pencil, affixed to card printed inside ‘Greetings from Clare Leighton and H. N. Brailsford’, inscribed ‘McCance’ in pencil verso;
Hungry Chicks, Wood engraving, signed in pencil, affixed to card printed inside ‘Greetings from Clare Leighton and H. N. Brailsford’, and annotated in pencil ‘& my love’;
Landscape, Wood engraving, signed in pencil, affixed to card printed inside ‘Christmas Greetings from Clare Leighton’, with ink annotation ‘& H. N. Brailsford’ (3)
Dimensions
each sheet 7.5cm x 13cm (3in x 5in); 8cm x 9.5cm (3.25in x 3.75in); 5cm x 6.5cm (2in x 2.5in), unframed
Provenance
From the Estate of William McCance.
Footnote
Clare Leighton was born in London in 1898 and became a prolific artist, writer, and illustrator, best known for her wood engravings. She belonged to a generation of young women whose opportunities and outlook expanded following the First World War. Leighton studied at Brighton Art School, the Slade School of Art, and the Central School of Arts and Crafts. In 1939, she moved to the United States, eventually taking up a teaching position at Duke University. Over her career, Leighton produced more than 840 wood engravings, and this strong work ethic is reflected in her art. Drawn to images of rural workers, her pieces tactfully capture the honest beauty of the workers' tasks amidst the hardships of their daily life.