The Moray Minstrels (Invitation card of Arthur James Lewis)

William Harcourt Hooper|Frederick Walker|Arthur James Lewis

1865 · Wood engraving on chine volant · Drawings and Prints

This printed invitation was created for the well-to-do silk merchant Arthur James Lewis who, before his 1867 marriage, regularly welcomed male friends to Moray Lodge, his home on Campden Hill, overlooking London's Holland Park. Once a month, between January and March, singers would gather on Saturday evenings at 8:30 pm to perform modern and ancient works; with oyster suppers served at eleven. Lewis was himself an amateur artist who joined the Junior Etching Club and welcomed London artists, such as J. M. Whistler, to his home. The invitation captures the jolly informality of Lewis's entertaining (see 58.503.1 for the related drawing). The cut woodblock for this print is in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Artist

William Harcourt Hooper|Frederick Walker|Arthur James Lewis

Date

1865

Medium

Wood engraving on chine volant

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1958