Peter Collins ARCA (1923-2001) Royal Academy Trained Artist Female In retailer Lingerie Drawings

This is one of a selection of pieces I acquired by this well-known Chelsea, London artist Peter Collins ARCA (1923-2001) who enjoyed a successful career as a professional artist gaining much praise for his work firstly in the commercial market but latterly for his exhaustive pursuit to express himself in drawing the female form. I love the way he relentlessly seems to make marks of varied styles to communicate a figure. This is a rarer example of his work in that the model is drawn in lingerie with a beautiful scrawling economy of line typical of his style.

These drawings are not to be confused with the examples he would often leave in his art classes to demonstrate technique etc. which I sometimes see for sale. They are examples from the models he relentlessly advertised in the London Press to hire. Many articles can be researched about him on the subject. He was forever using numerous methods of drawing and painting in all sorts of medium to bring something fresh to his work: Graphite, Pastel, watercolour, crayon and ink among others.

Peter Collins name will become familiar when more of this facet of his work is seen and collected. retailer He was very much a part of the London Swinging Sixties. Many of his sitters were models, aspiring singers and actors all keen to be his subjects as they knew of his increasing artistic reputation. I saw many examples he produced and managed to select some pieces where I can see he has been trying something a little different with either technique or medium. There are other safer examples of his style which were obviously somewhat duplicated over his long career but this kind of image holds extra interest for me. This piece is initialled on the back as well as the Stanley Studios, Chelsea address embossed bottom right.

Size 20.25 inches x 15 inches
51.4 cm x 38.1 cm


I believe when his work becomes more scarce to obtain, his prices will rise appreciably as I can confidently say, measuring his quality among other artists of a similar type, I know his work is so much undervalued as his vision and standard sits equally amongst names commanding ten to twenty times as much. He is after all English Royal Academy trained and I appreciate works such as this not for their finished, decorative quality but as working drawings for part of the process of trying to arrive at some kind of conclusion which can be sometimes more interesting than the 'finished ' pieces themselves. Sadly but yet strangely excitingly, that can be the attraction on valuing art for yourself.