Chapman, C. W.

Introduction:

Very little is known about Chapman apart from the evidence of a rare few examples of his work – a pair of silhouettes owned by a Mr R Kilner in the 20th century. In these, Chapman’s signature is recorded always below the bust-line as ‘C. W. Chapman, 59, Oxford St.'195

. They show a man and a woman, at almost-half length. Particular care has been taken over the details of dress and hair styles, which are highlighted with delicate strokes of gilding. On both profiles gum Arabic has been used to outline the clothing. They are mounted in rectangular card mounts with scalloped corners. These are decorated with dark rectangular lines, each corner being stressed by a diagonal line.