Missing Patrick Heron artwork discovered at Kent

One of several portraits of T.S Eliot by British artist Patrick Heron has been discovered at the University of Kent.

The artwork, thought to be one of few pieces painted with Eliot present, had been assumed missing by the Heron Estate until a new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery prompted the University to announce its whereabouts.

The University acquired the piece of art in 1979 with assistance of a grant from the Linbury trust. The portrait will shortly go on display in a temporary exhibition within the University’s School of Arts, Jarman Building.

Dr Jon Kear, History and Philosophy of Art, said: ‘The painting is a remarkable portrait of one of the great modernist writers by one of the best and most admired modern British artists of the post- Second World War generation. The series of portraits of Eliot, begun in 1947 and completed in 1949, are considered among his greatest paintings.’

It is hoped the portrait will join a proposed touring exhibition by the National Portrait Gallery after missing the opportunity to be involved in the current exhibition ‘Patrick Heron: Studies for a portrait of T.S. Eliot’.

Contact: k.scoggins@kent.ac.uk

Story published at 4:31pm 12 February 2013