• Business
  • Life
  • Celebrity
  • Sport
  • Blog
  • Auto
  • Tech
Stories from SWNS
Advertisement
  • Home
  • News
    VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

    VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

    Living The Fantasy: An Interview With The Serpent Calls Author Christopher Bramley

    Living The Fantasy: An Interview With The Serpent Calls Author Christopher Bramley

    Sharp As A Razor: An Interview With Atheist Author Harry Margulies

    Sharp As A Razor: An Interview With Atheist Author Harry Margulies

    Karim Tahseen Khayat: Seeds Training Services and Digital Services

    Dig into Temporarily Insane by Carl Borgen

    Dig into Temporarily Insane by Carl Borgen

    From HID to LED

    From HID to LED

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Business
  • Life
    • Celebrity
  • Tech
    Which elements should you have for a good landing page?

    Which elements should you have for a good landing page?

    4 IT Services Trends in 2022

    4 IT Services Trends in 2022

    Top 5 New Technologies in the Payment Industry For 2022

    Top 5 New Technologies in the Payment Industry For 2022

    Online casinos: A trend that grows daily

    Online casinos: A trend that grows daily

    Artificial Intelligence and Online Casino Games

    Artificial Intelligence and Online Casino Games

    What are the Latest Digital Marketing Trends?

    What are the Latest Digital Marketing Trends?

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
  • Review

    The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild gameplay on the Nintendo Switch

    Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun Review

    macOS Sierra review: Mac users get a modest update this year

    Hands on: Samsung Galaxy A5 2017 review

    The Last Guardian Playstation 4 Game review

    Intel Core i7-7700K ‘Kaby Lake’ review

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

    VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

    Living The Fantasy: An Interview With The Serpent Calls Author Christopher Bramley

    Living The Fantasy: An Interview With The Serpent Calls Author Christopher Bramley

    Sharp As A Razor: An Interview With Atheist Author Harry Margulies

    Sharp As A Razor: An Interview With Atheist Author Harry Margulies

    Karim Tahseen Khayat: Seeds Training Services and Digital Services

    Dig into Temporarily Insane by Carl Borgen

    Dig into Temporarily Insane by Carl Borgen

    From HID to LED

    From HID to LED

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Business
  • Life
    • Celebrity
  • Tech
    Which elements should you have for a good landing page?

    Which elements should you have for a good landing page?

    4 IT Services Trends in 2022

    4 IT Services Trends in 2022

    Top 5 New Technologies in the Payment Industry For 2022

    Top 5 New Technologies in the Payment Industry For 2022

    Online casinos: A trend that grows daily

    Online casinos: A trend that grows daily

    Artificial Intelligence and Online Casino Games

    Artificial Intelligence and Online Casino Games

    What are the Latest Digital Marketing Trends?

    What are the Latest Digital Marketing Trends?

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
  • Review

    The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild gameplay on the Nintendo Switch

    Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun Review

    macOS Sierra review: Mac users get a modest update this year

    Hands on: Samsung Galaxy A5 2017 review

    The Last Guardian Playstation 4 Game review

    Intel Core i7-7700K ‘Kaby Lake’ review

No Result
View All Result
Stories from SWNS
No Result
View All Result
Home News

X-ray reveals hidden masterpiece by artist Robert Lenkiewicz

by
June 21, 2010
in News
2
0
SHARES
26
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

A collector who bought a portrait by a celebrated British artist has uncovered a £50,000 masterpiece – after this X-ray revealed another picture hidden underneath.

The art lover bought the original piece – which shows artist Robert Lenkiewicz in a nude pose with a female model – at auction.

But after advice from an expert the unnamed owner took the oil painting to his local hospital to have it X-rayed.

He was stunned to see that underneath the naked couple was the portrait of a tramp – thought to be worth an estimated £50,000.

Lenkiewicz was famous for his works with the homeless and after he died in 2002 an embalmed tramp was found in his studio.

The owner of the double portrait, who bought it in a collective auction of Lenkiewicz’s work in 2003, believes the artist must have painted over it for some reason.

But it lay undetected until he recently took it to Torbay Hospital in Torquay, Devon, to be X-rayed.

He said: ”When the experts looked at it they reckoned it contained another picture underneath.

”So it took it to Torbay Hospital and discovered the tramp, which could be worth more than what is painted over it.

”The picture I bought at auction could soon be valued at more than £50,000.”

”It is a private work and perhaps should never have gone under the hammer at the estate’s sale in 2003.”

Lenkiewicz, of Plymouth, Devon, died of a heart attack aged 60 and left behind no cash but a collection of art worth an estimated £2million, most of this was was auctioned in 2003.

Shortly after his death the body of a 72-year-old tramp was found in the studio – embalmed and stuffed in a drawer.

The tramp – Edwin McKenzie, known as Diogenes – was a close friend of the artist and his whereabouts since his death in the 1980s had been a mystery.

It was believed the dying wish of Mr McKenzie, who had no known family, was that his friend should embalm his body as a ”work of art”.

The pair first met when the tramp was living in a concrete barrel at a rubbish tip near his studio and the artist embalmed him in 1984.

Officials at Plymouth City Council later tried to seize the corpse but couldn’t find the it until it was discovered hidden following Lenkiewicz’s death.

It is technically possible to remove the top painting to reveal the tramp materpiece underneath, but the price tag would not be justified on a £50,000 painting.

Art dealer Adrian Phippen, a Lenkiewicz expert, said the double portrait was ”a very important piece of work” by the artist.

”Works like this one will become more valuable and highly prized by collectors than the self portraits with women that he painted.

”To remove the top painting would be expensive but whoever buys it will have a unique piece by a leading British artist.”

A spokesman for South Devon Healthcare Trust added: ”On rare occasions the hospital’s radiology team will be asked to X-ray an object.

”We will always try to aid people. In this particular case the trust was happy to help and staff gave up their own time outside clinical hours to carry out the unusual request.

”They will be pleased to know that they have been part of such a remarkable finding.

”We would like to offer our congratulations to the owner of the painting, who must be delighted with the discovery.

”Where the trust had been able to assist, a donation to the trust fund is usually made.”

The owner of the portrait, who lives in London and Ashburton in Devon, now plans to sell it at the Driftwood Gallery in Padstow, Cornwall.

He said: ”I think the image there now is very good and rare. And it would be expensive to ruin it to get to the tramp.”

The popularity of Lenkiewicz’s work has increased since his death and the current world record for one of his pictures stands at #57,600 for a self-portrait in 2005.

His work was virtually ignored by the art establishment during his lifetime, but now experts are comparing his colourful bohemian style with Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud.

Many of his paintings depict characters from around his home including skinheads, punks, criminals, fishermen, and the many women in his life.

Lenkiewicz learnt to paint with brushes made from his own hair and was married and divorced three times, leaving 11 children by various women.

Tags: art
Previous Post

Woman is dying from passive smoking caused by her parents’ 120-a-day habit

Next Post

Drunken man punches girlfriend in the face after mistaking her for a buglar

Next Post

Drunken man punches girlfriend in the face after mistaking her for a buglar

Comments 2

  1. woodworking ebooks says:
    12 years ago

    It is technically possible to remove the top painting to reveal the tramp materpiece underneath.

    Reply
  2. Carpenters and Joinery says:
    11 years ago

    Thats a fantastic find. I personally dont under stand how a painting could be revealed in an xray though.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to woodworking ebooks Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Stay Connected test

  • 116 Followers
  • 60k Followers
  • 174k Subscribers
  • 23.6k Followers
  • 99 Subscribers
  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Women love cheesy chat up lines, a study has revealed

Top 20 cheesy chat-up lines ladies really love

March 5, 2014
The top ten most well-known bingo phrases

The top ten most well-known bingo phrases

January 21, 2014
The horses thunder towards a jump at the Grand National

Amazing racehorse names which never made it

April 23, 2014
HGH Injections Brands: Which Ones Are Best?

HGH Injections Brands: Which Ones Are Best?

January 14, 2019
Chris Fear, 33, outside the Coral betting shop which is refusing to pay out on his 485/1 winning bet

Boycott Coral! Bookmaker faces protest after refusing to pay out on a football fan’s 485/1 bet

184
Women love cheesy chat up lines, a study has revealed

Top 20 cheesy chat-up lines ladies really love

147
Women feel invisible to the opposite sex at the age of 51, researchers found

Women begin feeling invisible to men ‘when they turn 51’

138
UKIP candidate claims Jews murdered each other in the Holocaust in masterplan to create State of Israel

UKIP candidate claims Jews murdered each other in the Holocaust in masterplan to create State of Israel

105
Best Activities for Adrenaline Junkies

Best Activities for Adrenaline Junkies

August 4, 2022
Trading indices is an easy way to trade for beginners

Trading indices is an easy way to trade for beginners

August 4, 2022
VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

July 29, 2022
How To Create The Perfect Vaping Experience

How To Create The Perfect Vaping Experience

July 28, 2022

Recent News

Best Activities for Adrenaline Junkies

Best Activities for Adrenaline Junkies

August 4, 2022
Trading indices is an easy way to trade for beginners

Trading indices is an easy way to trade for beginners

August 4, 2022
VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

VA Lawyer for Camp Lejeune Toxic Water

July 29, 2022
How To Create The Perfect Vaping Experience

How To Create The Perfect Vaping Experience

July 28, 2022
SWNS

SWNS all rights reserved. Copyright 2020

Follow Us

Browse by Category

  • Auto
  • Blog
  • Business
  • Celebrity
  • Gaming
  • Life
  • Lifestyle
  • News
  • Pictures
  • Property
  • Review
  • Sport
  • SWNS
  • Tech
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized

Recent News

Best Activities for Adrenaline Junkies

Best Activities for Adrenaline Junkies

August 4, 2022
Trading indices is an easy way to trade for beginners

Trading indices is an easy way to trade for beginners

August 4, 2022
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

Real Fix is a trading style of South West News Service Limited.
Copyright © 2020 South West News Service Limited.

No Result
View All Result
  • Business
  • Life
  • Celebrity
  • Sport
  • Blog
  • Auto
  • Tech

Real Fix is a trading style of South West News Service Limited.
Copyright © 2020 South West News Service Limited.