Richard Eurich

With the help of Sir Edward Marsh and Eric Gill, Richard secured a solo exhibition with the Goupil Gallery in London in 1929. He showed only drawings. The show was very well received and launched Richard's long career.

There are still many of the drawings to find from this important exhibition, made harder because some them may have been given different names from those in the catalogue.

Some extracts from Richard's diaries about this show:

"Yesterday afternoon Mr Stocks came in with his wife and Dr Jane Walker: the Harley Street specialist. They sat down while I ranged works of art in profusion around them. They seemed to be much impressed. A great argument ensued over the fact that Jane felt that the fat man playing the viol da gamba in the family group drawing, was not gripping the instrument with his knees and that it should have a spike! Mr Stocks argued about it, and I pointed out that such instruments did not have spikes, which Stocks said was purism.

However, they both want to buy the drawing from the Show, as many others do. They said they would have a race for it. Stocks also wants Betty and Paul and the Girl with a Baby. He bought The Screen  painting at the offer of £10, for which I was truly thankful. I don’t quite know why he is so keen on the said Screen, because I am not.

He also bought the Boy in Indian Head-dress for £8 which I am getting framed. It was exhibited at the London Group early this year. So now I shall be able to pay for the framing thank goodness!"

"One lady who I was told to be affable to, a Mrs. V. said she thought (her false teeth clicking) that people wanted coloured pictures at this time of the year! I was talking to someone else when one of the secretaries interrupted saying Lady L. wished to be introduced to me. I was greeted by a crinkly smile through paint and powder and a most remarkable makeup: a curious brown colour round the eyes and orange eyebrows, reddish hair, large eyes. She was wearing a black velvet shapely jacket with a most astonishing flower: an orchid or something pinned to it, a luxury that must have cost something. She had come to see the other shows but found mine much more interesting (?!) A number of people said the same thing.

Last night I had a note from the Goupil asking me to call round as they had an offer for a drawing or two. The little cockney doorkeeper greeted me with a grin saying that his favourite: The Charlady Bows was not sold yet! But otherwise they had been selling like hot cakes yesterday! I staggered into the gallery and found 10 sold and 1 reserved. Mr. Yorkney said a customer had taken 4 drawings, which he would give £35 for, which is all very nice. So now my expenses are paid and a bit over as well. Let us hope someone will fall into the trap, as Mr. Yorkney put it, and buy some more. He also said that it was probably the best selling show in London this Christmas as things are so terribly bad just now'. "

An extract from Richard's memoir about meeting Christopher Wood at the private view:

. . . With a poor effort at being gallant [the elderly man] turned to me and pointing to a young man said “Well at any rate you might as well know a fellow artist of the name Wood” then took his lady’s arm and shuffled out of the gallery.

I turned to the young man with great interest as I had much admired recently some water colours and drawings by Kit Wood which showed a vision of almost child-like clarity combined with draughtsmanship of undoubted mastery. So I asked if he was Christopher Wood and he replied that he was. We talked for some time about each other’s work and then he too left the gallery which became less populated as the afternoon was nearly over. In less than a year he was dead.

After his death his prodigious output was revealed and his outlook had a profound effect on my work; for here was a young man who tried out all manner of fashionable styles before emerging perfectly free and uninhibited to paint what he loved.