John Duncan Fergusson - The Chaperone

John Duncan Fergusson (1874-1961)

The Chaperone / 1907
Heavy pencil
6.25 x 8.25 ins / 16 x 21 cms

PROVENANCE
Margaret Morris
Collection of Harry McColl
Private Collection, Scotland

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The wonderful vitality of this enlightening sketch is indicative of the great excitement the young Fergusson felt for his new surroundings, which must have been enormously inspiring to an artist so susceptible to the everyday incidents of human activity. The confident strokes of the pencil and the immediacy of the drawings are comparable to similar studies made by Degas and Lautrec. These sketches are spontaneous and lucid and beautifully capture the sophistication and joi-de-vie of Paris in the early years of the twentieth century.

Harry McColl was one of JD Fergusson's best friends and was a businessman working in Paris. He took Fergusson to the Chantilly races and to smart cafe's throughout Paris where he encouraged Fergusson to sketch. He often travelled with Fergusson and Fergusson would often meet with McColl on his business and recreational travels throughout France. Fergusson talking of a recent trip to Nice said of McColl in a letter to Margaret Morris "Yes, we had a very good time together - walked and talked about everything; its really a terrific thing friendship...Harry was the first person to come see me. He's the man I like best, Quite wonderful."