{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O1375242"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1375242/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2017JT2842/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2017JT2842/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"low","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2017JT2842","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":null},"record":{"systemNumber":"O1375242","accessionNumber":"S.311-2016","objectType":"Painting","titles":[{"title":"Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies as Etain","type":"generic title"}],"summaryDescription":"Painting on glass of Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies as Etain in <i>The Immortal Hour</i>, painted by Jean Grahame, early 20th century.\n\nGwen Ffrangcon-Davies (1891-1992) had a long career as a stage and screen actress, being particularly known for her performances in Shakespeare and the classics of world theatre. She began her stage career in 1911, as a singing fairy in Beerbohm Tree's production of <i>A Midsummer Night's Dream</i>. Being possessed of a fine singing voice, her early roles were mainly musical. In 1919 she appeared at the Glastonbury Festival, then a festival of contemporary classical music, playing the Virgin Mary in Rutland Boughton's <i>Bethlehem</i>, a music drama based on the Coventry Mystery Plays, and the faery princess Etain in Boughton's <i>The Immortal Hour</i>, an opera based on the play and poems of William Sharp (writing under the name of Flora Macleod). \n\n<i>The Immortal Hour</i>, first staged in 1914, proved extremely popular in its 1919 revival and gained something of a cult following. The story, taken from Celtic fairy-lore, concerns the beautiful immortal Etain. Placed under a spell of forgetfulness by Dalua, Lord of Shadow, she meets and weds the mortal High King of Eire. Then, reminded of her origins by the singing of her first love, Midir, she returns with him to the Faery world, and her human husband falls dead at a touch from Dalua. The opera was revived by Barry Jackson's Birmingham Repertory Theatre Company in 1921, first at Birmingham and then in London at the Old Vic. In 1922 it was presented as part of a Birmingham Repertory Theatre season at the Regent Theatre in London. Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies played Etain in all the revivals. E.J. Dent, reviewing the 1922 production for the <i>Illustrated London News</i>, wrote of Ffrangcon-Davies: 'she is an actress as well as a singer, indeed one almost forgets that she is a singer, so little show does she make with her voice. She sings the whole part in a delicate mezzo voce that exactly suggests the remoteness of Etain's personality. Every word comes through perfectly, and every note is exquisitely sung - it is the most striking example of that art which conceals art'.\n\nThis painting belonged to Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies.","physicalDescription":"Painting on glass of Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies as Etain in <i>The Immortal Hour</i>, full length, profile, facing viewer's left. She has shown as a sinuous figure with long black hair, standing with her left arm extended and wearing a long dark green dress, the folds indicated by gold lines. Behind her are straight black tree trunks against a green background. The background is formed of layers of green glass over foil. The painting is mounted in a wooden frame, the front of the frame coated in plaster to create a textured surface and painted gunmetal grey. \r\n\n","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Grahame, Jean","id":"AUTH342023"},"association":{"text":"artist","id":"AAT25103"},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"paint","id":"AAT15029"},{"text":"glass","id":"AAT10797"},{"text":"foil","id":"AAT160106"}],"techniques":[{"text":"painting (image-making)","id":"AAT54216"},{"text":"glass-working","id":"AAT53929"}],"materialsAndTechniques":"Paint on glass","categories":[{"text":"Entertainment & Leisure","id":"THES48959"},{"text":"Theatre","id":"THES250537"},{"text":"Glass","id":"THES48946"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"T&P","id":"THES48602"},"images":["2017JT2842"],"imageResolution":"low","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"B","id":"THES304951"},"free":"","case":"","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"paintings","id":"AAT33618"}],[{"text":"glass","id":"AAT10797"}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"Great Britain","id":"x32019"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"early 20th century","earliest":"1900-01-01","latest":"1950-12-31"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[{"object":{"text":"THM/448","id":"ARC69908"},"association":"Archive record"}],"creditLine":"Acquired with the assistance of Friends of the National Libraries","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Height","value":"38.9","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"frame","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"30","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"frame","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[{"content":"'JEAN GRAHAME'","inscriber":{"name":{"text":"","id":""},"association":{"text":"","id":""}},"date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"description":"","interpretation":"","language":"","medium":"","method":"","position":"","script":"","translation":"","transliteration":"","type":"","note":"Artist's name, lower left hand corner."},{"content":"'\"I will go back / To the Country of the Young\" / 1923 - 1954'","inscriber":{"name":{"text":"","id":""},"association":{"text":"","id":""}},"date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"description":"","interpretation":"","language":"","medium":"","method":"","position":"","script":"","translation":"","transliteration":"","type":"","note":"Inscribed in ballpoint pen on the backboard."}],"objectHistory":"","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Painting on glass of Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies as Etain in <i>The Immortal Hour</i>, painted by Jean Grahame, early 20th century\r","bibliographicReferences":[],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[{"text":"Ffrangcon-Davies, Gwen (Dame)","id":"N2916"}],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":["The Immortal Hour"],"galleryLabels":[],"partNumbers":["S.311-2016"],"accessionNumberNum":"311","accessionNumberPrefix":"S","accessionYear":2016,"otherNumbers":[{"type":{"text":"Archive number","id":"THES54576"},"number":"THM/448"}],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2026-01-21","recordCreationDate":"2016-12-15","availableToBook":true}}