The Refugee by William Orpen

A page from The Tatler reporting on a painting by Sir William Orpen which caused a stir in London when it was exhibited at the Agnew Galleries in 1918. The Imperial War Museum, who hold the original gives the following account: This portrait caused considerable problems with the British military authorities as Orpen gave the piece the provocative title A Spy'. But rather than being a spy or a refugee, the subject was in fact Yvonne Aubicq, a young French girl who was Orpen's lover. Lieutenant-Colonel A N Lee, the British censor of official artwork, requested an explanation and Orpen elaborated on his provocative title with a false story. He claimed that the sitter was a German spy executed by a French firing squad. This was a subject particularly sensitive as Mata Hari had recently been executed by the French and the German execution of the British nurse Edith Cavell, who had aided the escape of Allied soldiers, was commonly used in Allied propaganda. Orpen was recalled to London and had to retract his story. He was severely reprimanded and only through his War Office connections did he manage to retain his status as an official war artist in France. Despite this episode, Orpen and Lee became good friends

Agnew Galleries Orpen Provocative Refugee Spies Tatler Undressed

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