Edward George Handel Lucas

E G Handel Lucas
Self Portrait, 1887
Born4 May 1861
Croydon
Died4 April 1936
Westcliff-on-Sea

E G Handel Lucas (1861–1936) was an English artist.[1] He was hailed as a child prodigy and exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists from the age of 14 and at the Royal Academy of Arts from age 17. He is best known for astonishingly realistic flower paintings and still lifes painted in the 1880s, 1890s and 1900s. His major works took anything from 6 to 16 months to paint.[2]

Demand for his work fell when new artistic styles emerged in the 1900s. He fell into debt, a situation made worse when he became interested in photographic reproduction and invented a new printing process. The company he formed to perfect this process crashed and he lived the rest of his life in poverty.[3] His paintings were forgotten about after his death, but interest revived when some started appearing in auction houses from 1972 onwards.[4]

  1. ^ Obituaries, Mr. E. G. Handel Lucas, The Times, 8 April 1936; p.16; Issue 47344; col D.
  2. ^ Surrey Artists and their Homes, II – Mr. E. G. Handel Lucas, The Croydon Advertiser, 5 November 1887.
  3. ^ Edward George Handel Lucas The Artist 1861–1936, Short resume of his life by his elder daughter Miss Cecil Lucas, 20 May 1972; courtesy of the Museum of Croydon.
  4. ^ Geraldine Norman, Blowing the dust off a forgotten pre-Impressionist, The Times, 15 June 1972.