c 1900 Albert Bruce Joy 4p PART ALS re Mary Anderson bust & lost child portrait For Sale

Autograph PART letter signed (“A. Bruce Joy”), 4pp., Beaumont Road, West Kensington, undated but c. 1900s. This is a part of a longer letter, the surviving pages beginning mid‑sentence and representing the middle and closing portion of the correspondence.

A reflective and unusually personal fragment from the Irish sculptor Albert Bruce‑Joy (1842–1924), discussing two of his own works and referring to the loss of a child for whom he had modelled an earlier portrait.

Joy writes that he likes to be judged by a particular work “as by anything I have ever done”, noting that “the little fellow went off about 23 years ago”, a clear allusion to a child who died young, for whom he had made a small portrait piece. He contrasts this with the bust of the actress Mary Anderson, “a very different subject!”, which he records as having been modelled in nine days — “the next quickest thing I have ever done”. This refers to the small portrait bust later held in the Shakespeare Memorial collections at Stratford.

He apologises that his wife cannot be in town “as I explained in my last note”, and hopes to introduce “her & myself & our daughters”. A postscript advises that the bronze and its dark marble pedestal should be viewed in strong light “(light from above)” or the modelling cannot be seen.

A candid, revealing partial letter, offering rare insight into Joy’s working methods, his portrait of Mary Anderson, and a poignant reference to a lost child.

Condition as photos. All items can be returned for a full refund if found to be not as described. Complete with a digital .jpg (as attached) Certificate of Authenticity & Provenance.

Albert Bruce-Joy (Aug 1842 – Jul 1924) was an Irish sculptor working in England. His original surname was Joy but he became known under his hyphenated name Bruce-Joy later in life. He was the brother of the painter George W. Joy.

PROVENANCE:

One of c.2,500+ items once from the collection or dealer stock of Winifred A Myers (Autographs) Ltd, St Martins Lane, London, evidenced by the quantity of Myers pre-printed envelopes and paper folders and the general ‘presentation’ of the items, many having Myers identification notes in pencil.

Winifred Alice Myers (1909 - 1985) served as ABA (Antiquarian Booksellers Assoc) president, 1950-1952. See the ABA website for an extended article on Myers. Myers left her business, in 1985, to Ruth Shepherd, who traded from home until 2004.

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