Tag: Merlin Holland

Article

Bonhams

Oscar Wilde Blog1 Comment

Bonhams Catalogue, February 24, 1998.

No apostrophe in Bonhams, apparently.

In my last blog post about a picture that was Not Oscar, I related the story of how an image purporting to show a young Wilde in an assembly of pupils at Portora Royal School, had to be withdrawn from an auction at Bonhams in 1998.

Merlin Holland explained the reasons for the removal in his recent book After Oscar (pp. 576-578), also confirming that the withdrawal was made immediately prior to the sale.

On account of this last fact, I was asked whether the late decision had left Bonhams time to amend the offering of the withdrawn items, or had the catalogue already been printed?

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Article

Not Oscar

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Contemporary newspaper report of the photograph.
(Author’s Collection)

Not a Photograph of a Young Oscar

Withdrawn From a Bonhams Auction, 1998.

In his recent retrospective After Oscar, Merlin Holland recalls how he was often called upon to verify ostensible photographs of Oscar Wilde.

One such photograph purported to show a young Oscar in an assembly of pupils at Portora Royal School.

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Article · News

End of the Innocence

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Whitehouse vs. The BBC
Perversely Topical

No, not that White House. But still topical because, coincidentally, Merlin Holland’s new book, Oscar Wilde, The Legacy of a Scandal, tells of a spat between another Whitehouse and the BBC—and a group of perverse individuals.

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News · Review

After Oscar

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‘After Oscar’ by Merlin Holland
Reading Between the Lies1

Merlin Holland’s new retrospective of the societal and family legacy of Oscar Wilde has been over two decades in the making—which is understandable given the research necessary to counter what Holland describes as “…one of the longest continuous acts of hypocrisy in British history.”

The result is a historical accounting that alternates between biography and autobiography into a 700 page feat of storytelling.

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Article · News

Divided Opinion

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Civic Monument or Public Art?

All statues are sculpted, but not all sculptures are statues.

A bronze bust titled ‘The Head of Oscar Wilde’ was installed recently on Dovehouse Green—a small London park not far from where Wilde lived in Tite Street, Chelsea,

It is a posthumous work by the Scottish sculptor and graphic artist, Sir Eduardo Paolozzi (1924—2005), made possible by a charitable foundation to mark the centenary of his birth, and its unveiling was also timed appropriately to occur on Oscar Wilde’s birthday.

The physical configuration of the piece renders our man of letters as a fallen and fractured figure. Metaphor this may be—but, absent a meaningful reading, its composition is inclined to suggest itself, ironically, as a symbol of divided opinion.

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Article · News · Review

Rosebud II — Stephen Fry

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Gyles Brandreth on X: "It's Friday! It's Fry-day! It's the day Stephen Fry is my special guest on ⁦@therosebudpod⁩ sharing his first memories & much besides. #Rosebud wherever you get your podcasts
THE SOUND OF LEATHER ON BRIAN CLOSE

Following the podcast featuring Oscar Wilde’s grandson Merlin Holland in Gyles Brandreth’s series Rosebud, here is another worth noting for Wildeans who might have missed it.

It is an interview with broadcaster, comedian, and writer, Stephen Fry: and thus the President of the Oscar Wilde Society meets one of its honorary patrons (and the man who played Oscar Wilde in the film of that name in 1997).

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Announcement

Wilde House Fundraiser

Oscar Wilde Blog4 Comments

Wilde Sunflowers – original painting by Gerard Byrne, Signed.
Oil & acrylic border on canvas. Bespoke tray frame.

FUNDRAISER EXTENDED INTO THE NEW YEAR

—A Chance To Own This Original Painting—

VISIT RESTORATION PROJECT RAFFLE

The Oscar Wilde family home, built in 1760 at 1 Merrion Square North, Dublin, has embarked on a much-needed restoration to the annex that houses Sir William’s former consultation room, a gallery, and the balconied first floor orangery.

Here is an opportunity to support the project and in the process win an original artwork by one of Ireland’s leading contemporary artists, and artist-in-residence, Gerard Byrne—the painting was made in the Speranza lounge of the house during the recent Oscariana festival.

Artist Gerard Byrne with Oscar Wilde’s grandson, Merlin Holland,
who visited the house recently and lent his support to the project.

VISIT RESTORATION PROJECT RAFFLE

Closing Date is Thursday, 7th December 2023 @ 10pm

© John Cooper, 2023.

Related Links:

The Oscar Wilde House

Gerard Byrne — Artist

Donate without Raffle

Announcement · News

Wilde Sunflowers

Oscar Wilde Blog2 Comments

Wilde Sunflowers – original painting by Gerard Byrne, Signed.
Oil & acrylic border on canvas. Bespoke tray frame.

—A Chance To Own This Original Painting—

VISIT RESTORATION PROJECT RAFFLE

The Oscar Wilde family home, built in 1760 at 1 Merrion Square North, Dublin, has embarked on a much-needed restoration to its annex that houses Sir William’s former consultation room, a gallery, and the balconied first floor orangery.

Here is an opportunity to support the project and in the process win an original artwork by one of Ireland’s leading contemporary artists, and artist-in-residence, Gerard Byrne—the painting was made in the Speranza lounge of the house during the recent Oscariana festival.

Artist Gerard Byrne with Oscar Wilde’s grandson, Merlin Holland,
who visited the house recently and lent his support to the project.

VISIT RESTORATION PROJECT RAFFLE

Closing Date is Thursday, 7th December 2023 @ 10pm

© John Cooper, 2023.

Related Links:

The Oscar Wilde House

Gerard Byrne — Artist

Donate without Raffle

Announcement · Article · News

Sarony 3A

Oscar Wilde Blog4 Comments
Sarony 3A courtesy of the Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin, used with permission.
New Sarony Photograph Identified

A rarely seen image of Oscar Wilde has recently been added to the series of photographs taken by Napoleon Sarony on January 5th, 1882.

Its rarity is evidenced by the fact that it does not appear to have been been published in any publicly available print medium to date, nor anywhere else previously online.

However, a proof print of it has lain dormant in the extensive Wilde holdings of the Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin—in the James McNeill Whistler collection to be precise—and their copy might be the only extant print.

Let us see how this photograph re-emerged and how it affects the total count of known Sarony images of Oscar Wilde

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