0

Edward Burra: dandyism, fashion and the influence of homosexuality in the work of a modern artist

1. Introduction Edward Burra was an extremely talented, but often misunderstood English painter. To make the matter worse, he never really wanted to be understood at all and for that purpose he never gave insight into his art. Always choosing to be in a minority (Sooke 2007) he defied the existing predominant artistic tendencies and seemingly always chose the opposite ones. For example, when abstract art was in its prime, Burra painted only figurative paintings, when oil painting was the generally accepted medium, Burra turned to watercolors1 and many other similar examples. It is as if choosing the opposite was Burras main motto. It seems that no one would expect this middle class, well situated painter to oppose the never-spoken-about-but-always-existing rules of art in such extent. The truth is that Burra was full of contradictions. Apart from these contradictions being noticeable in his choice of art and his choice of art medium, they were generally noticeable in his own character. There is no better proof of this than his collection of letters which were published under the title Well Dearie and edited by his dear friend William Chappell. If one would happen to had seen Edward Burra in a crowd of people, one would certainly notice him primarily because of his physical appearance. Unfortunately, this however, would not be because he was an extremely handsome man. He was a sickly man, always very thin, often described by people who knew him as a man of a fragile physical construction and seeming to be continually near the edge of exhaustion (Cooper 1994, p.198). However, his physical condition was in a contradiction to his psychological condition. Psychologically, Burra was a man with a strong mind and of a resolute will. Although he tended to act quite extravagantly on some occasions, his closest friend, William Chappell, found that Burra had certain Victorian qualities which were created as a result of his upbringing (Burra and Chappell 1985). Besides the fact that Burras appearance was not of a great gentlemen, Burra is known to have thought to be exactly that a gentlemen. Some use the term dandy when
1

Although, one might state that there was another reason for him choosing watercolors, apart from his rebellion. The reason in question is his health, since he was not sufficiently robust to stand for long periods at a stretch (Rothenstein 1945, p. 6)

describing him, but when doing so they usually focus on describing his opinions and preferences in art, theatre, film and other various events he chose to visit. When the term dandy is used to describe Edward Burra it is usually not used to describe Burras physical appearance, since it was considered to be far from being appropriate for a fancy gentleman. This paper will further on explore the concept of dandyism when applied to Burra and his art. It is known that some of Burras artwork focuses heavily on the nightlife of the groups belonging to the margins of what is thought to be a descent society. Burra faithfully depicted not only the groups in question, but also the fashion of such groups and often doing so in great detail. This paper will show the connection between Burra as a dandy, fashion as one of his particular artistic focuses and his sexual orientation as a major influence on both of them.

2. Burra as a dandy? It is extremely difficult to determine when the term dandy first started to appear. There is no known exact year or place, for that matter, that could be attached to this term. Although, Jessica Feldman seems to have determined the origin of dandyism which she claims appeared simultaneously in London and Paris (Feldman 1993, p.1). Not trying to discuss the date of the appearance of dandyism, since that would take an entire paper to write, one could, based on facts, conclude that it became most prominent during the 19th century and especially during the 20th century. Before one moves further on with discussing whether or not Edward Burra could be considered a dandy, one must acquaint himself with the meaning of the term dandy. The Longman dictionary has the following definition of the term: A man who spends a lot of time and money on his clothes and appearance (Longman 2003, p.395). The definition given here is quite concise and limiting and focusing only on the physical segment of an entire phenomenon. It seems really hard for one to believe that dandies had nothing else in common apart from the same taste in clothing. Seen from this perspective Burra was not much of a dandy. However, Feldman gives a more insightful definition of the term, one which could include Burra. She states:

Dandies are skeptics who demand that their audiences recognize their status as human signifiers, freely moving about in the world (Feldman 1993, p.5). Firstly, let us observe Edward Burra in the light of Longmans definition of a dandy. It was previously stated that Burras appearance was far from that of a traditional dandy (Figure 1. & 2.). As it was previously said, he was full of contradictions. In some instances he was dressed up in his finest in a typical dandy pose, with a glass of alcohol and a cigarette (Figure 3.), and still even upon seeing these particular images one should not jump to conclusions and call him a complete dandy. There would always be something not quite dandy-like with Burra. In this image in particular that would be his leather jacket which was unimaginable for dandies who preferred suits above everything else. However, one should not completely dismiss Burra as a fashion lover. Although he did not practice it in great amounts, he certainly knew how to spot fashionable items and how to appreciate them. In his letters, which were published under the title Well dearie, one can easily notice Burras keen eye for fashion where he comments, in numerous occasions, on particular clothing of people he interacted with. He even goes in such details of describing every single part of the clothing ensemble, something that he transfers to his art. For example, when describing Dame Josephine Bakers wardrobe for the evening he wrote: She has a wonderful white osprey hat & a splendid Rhinestone dress covered in embroidered flowers also a 1920ies style coat with huge great white fox collar (Burra and Chappell 1985, p.145). Burra had a habit of sketching people and things which he found especially interesting, based on his memory while writing his letters. However, when he gave this particular description of Dame Josephine Baker, he did not provide a sketch for it. In order to give an example of such instance, when describing new shoes which he bought in Marseilles (Burra and Chappell 1985, p.38), next to a detailed description of the shoes he gave an equally detailed drawing of the shoes (Figure 4.). When taking this in consideration, one could clearly say that Burra could be associated with dandyism even in the concise definition of the Longman dictionary, for who besides a dandy would pay so much attention to shoes.

Secondly, let us view Burra according to Feldmans definition. He was a very talented painter and, more importantly, he was aware of his talent. This, he believed, gave him the right to judge other people. However, what is especially interesting, Burra never judged people with loose moral such as prostitutes, sailors, drunkards and similar people, but the judged people who he believed to be simpletons. One reason why he is thought not to have judged people who were despised by what people usually consider to be the normal society is because he identified himself with them (Melly 1985). A possible reason for this identification with the people of questionable morals could be the fact that he was a homosexual and that was during the greater part of his life punishable by law. Apart from identifying himself with them, Burra was fascinated by them seeing the quality of strangeness (Rothenstein 1945, p. 5) that they possessed. Burra came from a well to do middle class family which secured him a very good education, first at Eton than in Chelsea School of Art. He was an extremely well read individual and a great lover of the cinema. His background enabled him to travel the world, probably not as much as he would have if he was not as sickly as he was. In numerous occasions in his letters Burra also discusses music and famous singers of his time. On the other hand, as much as his mind was polished, his manners were not. Burra hated socializing with people he did not know from some previous stage in his life. He was notoriously private and was known to be quite unpleasant when his privacy was endangered. The only known instance on which he befriended a stranger and a fan of his art was with Monica Wodehouse (Burra and Chappell 1985, p.166). He is also quite famous for his complete disregard of art appreciation, in the sense that he did not see the point in the entire hype over an artwork. Consequently, he referred to art as fart on several occasions and shared his opinions in his letters (Burra and Chappell 1985, p.159). To further explain his unpolished manners, one will take the example given by Alistair Sooke, who said that when Burra was asked by the Royal Academy if he would consider becoming an associate, he shouted downstairs to his manservant, who had picked up the telephone: Tell them to f*** off, I'm busy. (Sooke 2007) Till this day it has not been recorded that anyone asked to join the Royal Academy replied in similar fashion. This, one might take as a definite characteristic of a person who is not a dandy.

Burra, as one might notice, cared little of other peoples opinions, but at the same time thought highly about his own opinions. In his letters one can read that he never restrained himself of expressing his opinion on any matter, giving advice in any situation and pointing out how foolish or irresponsible some of his friends were. His remarks usually focused on his friends love affairs such as the one of Clover de Pertinez and her turbulent marriage with Adam de Nagy. Burra was not outrageous himself, but he associated with people who were. He never had scandalous love relationships and in fact it is not know till this day if he ever had a love relationship at all, scandalous or not. Taking all of this into consideration, Burra could be labeled to be an intellectual dandy, a description often used when describing the nature of Oscar Wilde (Calloway), but a description well fitted when ascribed to Edward Burra.

Fashion in the works of Burra It was already mentioned that Burra was a very observant person, who had a particular fondness for details. This fondness demonstrated itself not only in his personal life, but in his artwork as well. Burra managed to use people as fashion dummies, in a way dressing them not as he would usually dress, but as he had seen other people dress and as he would have dressed if he had the courage for it. Although it was previously mentioned that Burra had little care for what other people thought of him and of his art, he did have some previously rooted Victorian principles which are believed to be a product of his fathers influence (Burra and Chapelle 1985). In that aspect he was a dandy and never wore clothing which could be described as vulgar. To paint fashionable people or, in general, fashion in art was a characteristic of a typical modern painter, that is if that painter chose to paint figures. Fashion was a crucial factor in painting since its very beginning. Through it, one sees a particular fashion of a historic period, from the middle ages until today. In the 20th century, priorities changed and the number of artists who chose to paint the society and thus its fashion became significantly smaller. Abstract painting had taken over the art world of that time. On the other hand, Burra was not alone in his wish to depict certain layers of society and their fashion. Artists such as Ernst Ludwig Kirchner painted

female figures wearing high fashion in his 1914 painting entitled Postdamer Platz (Figure 5.). Kirchner and Burra have a lot in common, especially considering the thematic of their work and types of society that they painted. In addition, George Grosz in his satirical works paid significant attention to both female and male fashion (Figure 6. & 7.). In Burras early work, such as the Two sisters (Figure 8.), one can notice his affinity for details in the clothing of the figures. Particular attention was paid to the appearance of the hats and shoes, accessories which Burra focused on for a longer period in his career. In the very beginning of his career, Burra dealt primarily with female figures, at least fashionwise. Most of the sketches made in his letters were female figures and usually had a reference about fashion in the letters. These sketches were not as detailed as Burras paintings, but nevertheless stand as indisputable proof of Burras talent. For example, when writing a letter to his best friend William Chappell in 1959, Burra discusses two women and their hats and haircuts (Figure 9.) stating: [Mrs. R] bought a black nylon fur beehiveI saw one seated in the two maggots that was at least two feet high or more, next to hair do in brightest ginger orange [] (Burra and Chappell 1985, p.145). What one might find quite fascinating is the accuracy of some Burras sketches especially keeping in mind that he never sketched while looking at the subject, but almost without exception sketching based on his memory for no one ever saw him sketch views or scenes, though he stared at them long and hard before re-creating them perfectly weeks or months later in his studio (Cooper 1994, p.200). This also applies to his paintings for which he always drew material from his memory and experience. Apart from paying attention to female fashion, he also painted fashionable male dandies. In paintings such as John Deth (Figure 10.) and Silver Dollar Bar (Figure 11.) one can notice particular male fashion. For example, in the former one, although Burra painted an unrealistic situation, based on his dream (The Art Fund) he depicted men in suits and bow ties and some men with unusual clothing. Although in this painting the female fashion is more emphasized and women are portrayed as wearing fashionable gowns and expensive-looking jewelry. Again, it is quite astonishing the amount of precision in painting the details both in male and female fashion. As it was previously mentioned, Burra

paid special attention to female accessories such as hats and hair ornaments, which can easily be seen in this painting. The details in male fashion in this painting can be attributed mainly to the central left figure which apparently is wearing some fashionable moustache. The latter painting mentioned, Silver Dollar Bar, depicts standard bars of the time, where Burra spent a fair deal of his time. The fashion here is not presented in such great detail, but one can get a sense of the fashion of the working class, primarily the bartenders and the fashion associated with sailors, which in fact has not changed a great deal until today. However, what is particularly interesting about Burras approach to male fashion is that he not only painted white dandies, which in essence are always the ones who are associated with the term, but also African-American dandies from Harlem. Burra stayed in Harlem during his world travels in the period between 1933 and 1934 (Burra and Chappell 1985, p.82). Burra was fascinated with African-Americans, especially with their physical appearance. When painting them, he seemingly added a special air to them, as if they were the real dandies compared to the white versions of them. He paints them as real gentlemen, dressed from head to toe, with fashionable hats, suits, ties and often enough with an inevitable cigar or a cigarette (Figure 12. & 13.). In the painting entitled simply Harlem (Figure 13), one sees several African-American men of different levels of dandyism. The central figure is more humbly dressed than the figures in its background, which are dressed more lavishly. The female figure here is also very interesting especially because of the details. Burra seemingly wants to emphasize the womans jewelry and in this he exaggerates by making the jewelry the third of the size of her feet. His skillfulness in detailing enables us to even guess the fabric of the womans coat, which is probably a fur coat. In addition, Andrew Stephenson claims that the elaborate make-up and clothes of the fur-coated woman on the sidewalk as indicators that she is a prostitute (Edward Burra: Harlem). Besides the fact that Burra indeed was fascinated by such personalities as prostitutes and transvestites, there is little to indicate that the woman here is in fact a prostitute. On the contrary, the groceries make us believe that she has just finished shopping and on her ways home and her clothing is similar to what mistresses and wives of wealthy men wore, not common prostitutes (compare with Figure 14.). One might come to a conclusion that this appears to be an idealized version of Harlem in the 1930s. However,

if indeed this painting was based on people that Burra met during his stay in Harlem, those people belonged to the minority of wealthy African-Americans. In truth, if one looks at the figure 15. one sees the reality of the situation of that time. On the other hand, in case one chooses to embrace Andrew Stephensons theory that all the portrayed men are members of the criminal underworld, which openly stroll the streets [...] it is this flagrant exhibition of deviancy, which marks the particular illicit appeal (Edward Burra: Harlem), one would have the explanation of the mens wealth and could easily believe that perhaps this is not an idealistic representation after all. Striptease (Figure 16.) is another painting that was created during Burras stay in Harlem. Here, one is introduced to the Harlem nightlife as he is placed in the position of the observer. The crowd is predominantly African-American and Burra maintains the manner of depicting them the same as in the previous painting, although using a lighter color palette. Again, Burra is described, in this case by Andrew Causey, as a close observer of clothing, hairstyles and mannerisms [] the artist used these details to pick out individuals within the crowd (Edward Burra: Striptease, Harlem).

Homosexuality as a part of Burra's art It seems to have become an everyday stereotype that where is fashion, there are homosexuals. This connects perfectly to the concept of dandyism. Dandies were usually seen as effeminate males and, as Jessica Feldman claims that Kempf attributes effeminacy of dandies to their homosexuality; to label it is thus to explain it (Feldman 1993, p.10). Burra certainly was not someone who you would call a macho man and, for some part, that was due to his fragile physical construction occurring as a result of his lifelong illness. Although he also did not practice wearing fashionable clothing in its full extent, as it was previously discussed, he was considered to be something of an intellectual dandy. If one accepts Kempfs views of dandies, then one attributes homosexuality to Edward Burra as well. However, as it happens to be, one would not be so far away from truth after all.

The question of Burras sexuality is a question which has not been discussed in depth till this day and art historians in general tend to believe that indeed he was gay. Burra never declared himself as being a homosexual and that might be due to the fact that homosexuality was punishable by law in England until 1967 (Homosexuality and the Law in England). However, this does not explain the fact that some of his friends seemed to be able to have same sex relationships without repercussions and the fact that Burra spent a considerable amount of time in France where homosexuality was legal since 1791 (Sibalis 2004). The question why he felt unsafe to do so will unfortunately never get a definite answer. One can guess, but in the end that would remain to be just that an assumption. What one knows for sure is that he certainly did have strong homosexual tendencies, but probably never indulged in them, presumably always remaining celibate (Hubbard). The letters which he wrote in his twenties, suggest indeed that he was gay. For example, in a letter to Barbara Ker-Seymer in 1925 he discusses in great length the mouth of a young man (Burra and Chappell 28), signs himself as fairy princess (Burra and Chappell 1985, p. 35) and in one of his letters, upon discussing some men, he clearly says: I cant take my eyes off, there must be something wrong; its not natural (Burra and Chappell 1985, p.98). As one can notice, Burra was having some inner conflicts regarding his sexuality which in turn he transferred to his art. There are many rumors surrounding the question of his relationships, rumors which include his alleged romantic relationships with Paul Nash and William Chappell. It is no secret that Paul Nash and Edward Burra were good friends. In fact, it is also no secret that Nash belonged to the group of few people that Burra actually respected. As far as the alleged romantic relationship between them, one might say, with a fair amount of certainty that it never happened. There is absolutely no proof that their relationship ever evolved into anything more than friendship. The same can be said about Burras alleged relationship with William Chappell. Although, the latter was a more intimate relationship, in the sense that they were much closer as friends than Burra was with Nash. Again Rachel Cook, basing her article on Jane Stevensons book, categorically rejects the idea of Burra and Chappell ever having a romantic relationship by stating: [] he was gay, but although 'susceptible to [male] magnificence', his relationships were, unsurprisingly, non-physical. In

10

life, his closest and dearest friend was Billy Chappell, the ballet dancer and theatre director, but the two were never lovers. (Cooke) Burra, being an extremely private person, chose not to completely expose his sexuality in his works. He never painted explicit scenes which one might interpret as being homosexual scenes, although homoeroticism is certainly one of the main components of his works (Neumann). Burra enjoyed painting scenes located in bars and nightclubs and in such scenes on some occasions he would insert a homoerotic atmosphere. For example, in the painting entitled Izzy ortz (Figure 17.), Burra, similar to the Striptease painting, places the viewer in the position of an observer. The difference, as Cooper claims, is that here one can detect elements of adoration and desire (Cooper 1994, p.200). If one looks at the given image of the painting, the only figures that one might label with Coopers stand of Burras adoration and desire would be the central figure of the sailor and more probably the two men in the right corner. The only reason that the former would be ascribed such description would be because it is the central figure of the composition, the only face that one can see completely. The latter, the two men in the right corner, could be ascribed such description solely on the assumption that both of them are gay, since they seem to be dancing with each other. This might be a far-fetched conclusion, but then again it is the only reasonable explanation of Coopers elements of adoration and desire in this painting. Similar conclusion one can make upon viewing the image of Burras painting Silver Dollar Bar where again one is faced with a central male figure which is more emphasized than the rest of the figures in the composition. This painting differs from the previous one, primarily in the level of adoration. Here one can see not only the central figures entire face, but also his musculature and it certainly has a more homoerotic atmosphere than the previous painting. Another painting that was already discussed in this paper in terms of male fashion could also be viewed in terms of expressing homoeroticism. The painting in question is Burras Striptease. Being located in a strip club the scene is automatically filled with eroticism. The first assumption one would make would be that the eroticism in this painting is a heterosexual one. That would not be entirely wrong. The interpretation of the painting could go both ways. Cooper in fact states that the brutal-looking thugs which make up the

11

audience in Striptease could be staring at each other or the nubile female stripper (Cooper 1994, p.200). Perhaps a more direct reference to homoeroticism would be Burras painting entitled Soldiers at Rye. The soldiers are presented as wearing tightly fitted clothing, which accentuate their muscular bodies. Apart from the entire musculature, Burra seemingly on purpose focuses on the soldiers buttocks. The style of painting is significantly different from the style used in the earlier mentioned paintings. Cooper attributes this to the apparent influence of the classic modeling of the body [in] the work of Signorelli (Cooper 1994, p.200). The pose of the figure on the left is particularly interesting. The figure seems to be more relaxed and perhaps in a more intimate conversation or relationship with the man next to him. It also seems to be in a more amorous pose than the rest of the figures. Another very interesting detail is that the figure on the far right of the composition appears to be pointing towards the amorous figure on the far left. In fact, all the figures, apart from the central one, appear to be facing the mentioned pair on the left. So, one can conclude that the real center of the composition is in fact concentrated on the pair on the left and that in fact, apart from the general atmosphere of homoeroticism, they are the main carriers of homosexuality in this work.

Conclusion Edward Burra is not the most popular English artist today. Not many books are written about him and his art and even less are written recently, aside from Jane Stevensons biography. It seems that the reason for neglecting Burra will still remain somewhat of a mystery. He certainly was a very interesting figure and that cannot be denied. This paper discussed a number of contradictions which characterized his personality. The contradictions differed between the ones related to his physical and mental state, the ones between the world and the society he lived in and the world and the society he painted and finally the contradiction regarding his sexuality and his (in)ability to embrace it.

12

The paper discussed whether or not Burra could be assigned the label of being a dandy. It also concluded that although he did not have the faade of a dandy, he definitely had some characteristics which are usually associated with them. Burra possessed a great deal of cultural awareness and was an avid theatre, cinema, ballet and opera visitor. He was well read and had a good taste in music. In fact, one could say with great certainty that Burra never had the slightest intention on depicting what some may call a cultural and polite society. He was far more interested in painting the society in bars and clubs and on the streets. When painting prostitutes, sailors, drunkards and African-Americans and doing so without passing judgments, Burra paid significant attention to the fashion of the people involved. Aside from using watercolors when painting, Burras strong point was painting details when depicting the fashion of the aforementioned groups. Finally, the paper discussed the question of Burras sexuality and its reflection in his artwork. The question was he or was he not a homosexual is not relevant when discussing the value of Burras art. His art is indisputably one of the most important contributions to English art. Nevertheless, this question is significant when analyzing some of his paintings since it shines a different light to them. Explicit homosexual scenes were never a part of Burras repertoire of themes, but the atmosphere of homoeroticism can certainly be detected in some paintings. In the end, one can conclude that there are numerous aspects from which Burras paintings could be analyzed and discussed. This paper dealt with only the aspects of Burras personal dandyism, the fashion in his works and Burras own sexuality and its effect on his work. His complex personality and his complex view of the world around him should on its own provide enough material for authors to write about and to finally place Burra in a much deserved place of a talented and admired English artist that he is.

13

Appendix

Fig. 1: Neil Munroe (Bunny) Roger, patron of young Edward Burra. Source: Dandyism.net http://www.dandyism.net/?page_id=652 [Accessed 17 December 2009]

Fig.2: Edward Burra, photography taken from the collection of his letters Well dearie! (Burra & Chappell 1985, p.91)

Fig. 3: Edward Burra, photography taken from the collection of Burras letters Well dearie! (Burra & Chappell 1985, p.95)

14

Fig. 4: Edward Burras, Untitled drawing, 1927, pencil drawing, dimensions unknown. Well dearie! (Burra & Chappell 1985, p. 38)

Fig. 5: Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Potsdamer Platz, 1914, oil on canvas. 200 x 150 cm, Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Photograph by Joerg P. Anders. Source: MoMA Multimedia. http://www.moma.org/explore/multimedia/ audios/45/930 [Accessed 27 December 2009]

Fig. 6: George Grosz, Married Couple, 1930 watercolor on paper, 66.0 x 47.3 cm Tate Gallery, London. Source: Incurses http://incursoes.blogspot.com/2004/09/marriedcouple.html [Accessed 27 December 2009]

15

Fig. 7: Georg Grosz, The Pillars of Society. 1926, oil on canvas. 200 x 108 cm, National Gallery, Berlin. Source: Rua do Patrocinio. http://ruadopatrocinio.wordpress.com/2009/ 07/page/3/ [Accessed 05 January 2010]

Fig. 8: Edward Burra, Two Sisters, 1929 oil on canvas, 59.7 x 49.5 cm, the Estate of Edward Burra, Lady Ritchie of Dundee. Source: Sotheby - Article http://www.sothebys.com/liveauctions/ sneak/archive/la_burra_0702.html [Accessed 05 January 2010]

16

Fig. 9: Edward Burra, Untitled drawing, 1959, pencil drawing, dimensions unknown. Well dearie! (Burra & Chappell 1985, p.145)

Fig. 10: Edward Burra, John Deth, 1930, watercolour with bodycolour, 56 x 76 cm, Crane Kalman Gallery Ltd. The Art Fund http://www.artfund.org/artwork/2399/john-deth-hommage-to-conrad-aiken-recto [Accessed 05 January 2010]

17

Fig. 11: Edward Burra, Silver Dollar Bar, 1948, watercolor, 11 x 72 cm, Lefevre Contemporary Art. Source: The Art Fund http://www.artfund.org/artwork/4683/ silver-dollar-bar [Accessed 9 January 2010]

Fig. 12: Edward Burra, Harlem, 1934, dimensions unknown. Source: Hermes http://hermes.hrc.ntu.edu.tw/lctd/asp/ periods/9/america/concept_4.htm [Accessed 9 january 2010]

(on the left) Fig. 13: Edward Burra, Harlem, 1934, Brush and ink and gouache on paper, 79.4x57.1cm. Source: Tate etc. http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue12/ ryeview.htm [Accessed 10 January 2010]

18

Fig. 14: Van der Zee, Couple in Racoon Coats, 1932, photography, dimensions unknown. Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery. Source: Scarlet. http://www.unl.edu/scarlet/archive/2006/10/12/story9.html [Accessed 10 January 2010]

Fig. 15: Harlem in the 1920s & 1930s. Source: Hermes http://www.unl.edu/scarlet/archive/2006/ 10/12/story9.html [Accessed 10 January 2010]

Fig. 16. Edward Burra, Striptease, 1934, watercolor and gouache on paper. 75 x 47.5 cm, private collection. Source: Waterman & Co. http://modernbritishart.com/pages/ single/1857.html [Accessed 11 January 2010]

19

Fig. 17: Edward Burra, Izzy Ortz, 1937, watercolour and pencil on paper, 73.60 x 104.50 cm, Estate Of The Artist c/o Lefevre Fine Art Ltd, London. Source: National Galleries of Scotland: Collection. http://www.nationalgalleries.org/collection/online_etour/4:328/9000/10 [Accessed 15 January 2010]

20

Fig. 18: Edward Burra, Soldiers at Rye, 1941, gouache and watercolor and ink wash on paper, 124.8 x 228 cm. Source: Tate: Collection. http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?cgroupid=999999961&workid=1835&searchid= 7915&tabview=image [Accessed 11 January 2010]

21

Printed sources: Burra, E. and W. Chappell (1985). Well, dearie! : the letters of Edward Burra. London, G. Fraser. Causey, A. (1985). Edward Burra : complete catalogue. Oxford, Phaidon. Cooper, E. (1994). The sexual perspective: homosexuality and art in the last 100 years in the West. New York: Routledge Feldman, J. (1993). Gender on the divide: the dandy in modernist literature. New York: Cornell Universiy Press Fox, C. & Manning, E. etc.(2006). Longman dictionary. Edinburg: Pearson Education Ltd. Melly, G. (1985). Edward Burra: Catalogue of an exhibition at the Hayward Gallery. London: Arts Council Rothenstein, J., E. Burra, et al. (1973). Edward Burra. London, Tate Gallery Publications. Sinfield, A. (2005) Cultural Politics - Queer Reading. New York: Routledge.

Internet sources:

Calloway, Stephen. (1997). "Wilde and the Dandyism of the Senses." Cambridge Collections Online. Retrieved 13 January, 2010 < http://cco.cambridge.org/extract?id=ccol052147471x_CCOL052147471XA005>

Cone, M. (1998). ''Review: Can Painting Be Saved''. Oxford Art Journal 57 (1): 79-81. Retrieved 10 January, 2010, from < http://www.jstor.org/stable/777995?seq=2&cookieSet=1>

Cooke, R. (2007). ''Review: Edward Burra by Jane Stevenson''. Guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 20 December, 2010, from < http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2007/nov/18/biography.feature>

22

Gale, M. (1998). " Edward Burra 1905-1976 ". Retrieved 22 December, 2009, from <http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?cgroupid=999999961&workid=1845&searchid =10182&roomid=false&tabview=text&texttype=8.> Neumann, C. E. (2005, March 23, 2006). " Burra, Edward." An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture. Retrieved 20 December, 2009, from <http://www.glbtq.com/arts/burra_e.html.> Sibalis, M. (2004). Napoleonic code. An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture. Retrieved 13 January, 2010, from < www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/napoleonic_code.html> Sooke, A. (2007). "Edward Burra: 'Always join the minority'." Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 20 December, 2009, from <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/non_fictionreviews/3669625/Edward-BurraAlways-join-the-minority.html.> Stephenson, A. (1987). "Review." Oxford Art Journal 10(1): 115-116. Retrieved 22 December, 2009, from < http://www.jstor.org/stable/1360313?seq=1> Unknown author. (2009). "Born on a 29 March." Retrieved 20 December, 2009, from <http://www.safran-arts.com/42day/art/art4mar/art0329.html.> Unknown author. Homosexuality and the Law in England. Retrieved 22 December, 2010, from <http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/wilde/wildelawpage.html>