Portrait of Grace – William Orpen Art Print

Portrait of Grace (c.1901) – William Orpen

Orpen painted Grace many times. This is one of the earliest — a pastel study made around 1901, when they were both young and he was still finding his way.

She is looking slightly upward, eyes almost closed, completely unguarded. This is not a posed portrait. It is a painter studying someone he knows completely, working quickly in pastel on a dark ground, not trying to impress anyone. The result is one of the most quietly affecting things Orpen ever made.

If you know the later painting — Grace on the cliffs above Dublin Bay, wind in her scarf, the sea behind her — this is where that story begins. Same woman, eight years earlier, in a studio, perfectly still.

Sir William Orpen (1878-1931), born in Stillorgan, Co Dublin, trained at the Metropolitan School of Art in Dublin and the Slade School in London, becoming one of the most successful portrait painters of his generation. His work hangs in the National Gallery of Ireland.

Sizes & Format

• 30 × 45 cm / 12 × 18″
• 60 × 90 cm / 24 × 36″
• Available framed (black, white, wood) or unframed

Print & Frame Details

Archival matte paper, 250gsm (110lb), acid-free and FSC-certified — off-white, uncoated. Framed prints: solid oak or ash wood frame, 20mm thick, with shatterproof protective glazing. Ready to hang, hanging kit included. Unframed prints up to A4 ship flat; larger sizes ship rolled in a protective tube.

Free Worldwide Shipping

Framed prints are packed with protective corners and wrap, boxed with reinforced edges, and braced with internal supports for extra rigidity (max 3 frames per package). Every order ships free, made to order and delivered from the hub closest to you: Ireland 3–7 business days · UK 4–8 · USA 5–10 · Canada 6–12 · Australia 7–14.