Lot 37: Eva Henrietta Hamilton (1876-1960) THE ESTUARY, MALAHIDE chalk inscription on original stretcher, of which a fragment has been retained oil on

Eva Henrietta Hamilton (1876-1960) THE ESTUARY, MALAHIDE chalk inscription on original stretcher, of which a fragment has been retained oil on canvas 44 by 44cm., 17.5 by 17.5in. Exhibited: Possibly exhibited as 'On the Malahide Shore', RHA, 1921, catalogue no 106 The eldest of the famous Hamilton sisters of Hamwood, Dunboyne, Eva was educted at Alexandra College, Dublin and began exhibiting at the age of 22 with the WCSI. In 1904 she showed two portraits of her sisters at the RHA, at which institute she was to eventually exhibit 121 works in total. Three years later her younger sister Letitia enrolled at the Metropolitan School of Art, possibly to distract herself from the miseries of a failed romance, and Eva joined too, almost immediately. There Eva came heavily under Orpen's influence, although the effect was lightened somewhat when she later went on to study under Henry Tonks at the Slade. Eva and Letitia travelled, painted and exhibited together most of their lives, with Eva's work consisting mainly of landscapes and group portraits in which family members feature predominatly. Indeed, some of the happily engaged children seen in this work playing on the sands at Malahide may be her nieces and nephews.