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The Case of Delicacy

Illustration
1927 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This is one of a number of illustrations created by Véra Willoughby (1870-1939) for an edition of Laurence Sterne's A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy, published in 1927. It was long considered that Willougby was born in Hungary but this was a fabrication apparently to appear more interesting. She was in fact from South Norwood and attended the Slade School of Art in London. In 1917 she met a much younger man, Peter Llewelyn Davies, who had been the inspiration for J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. Davies went on to become a publisher, commissioning her to create the illustrations for A Sentimental Journey and other texts.

The image relates to the novel's final chapter, entitled The Case of Delicacy. Parson Yorick is obliged to share his hotel room with a lady and her maid, so they meet to draw up a set of house rules. "We sat down to supper; and had we not had more generous wine to it than a little inn in Savoy could have furnished, our tongues would have been tied up, till necessity herself had set them at liberty - but the lady having a few bottles of Burgundy in her voiture sent down her fille de chambre for a couple of them..." Yorick and the lady finally retire to separate beds and a night of erotic tension, with the maid close at hand.

Willoughby also produced a number of theatrical designs and illustrations in the early 1920s, using the name Vera Petrovna.



Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleThe Case of Delicacy (published title)
Materials and techniques
pencil
Brief description
Véra Willoughby. A man and woman seated at a table on which are wine glasses, bottles and a candle, within a decorative border. Drawing used as illustration to Laurence Sterne's A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy, published by Peter Davies, London, 1927
Physical description
Drawing
Dimensions
  • Height: in
  • Width: in
Credit line
Given by Mrs. Althea Wolton, the artist's daughter
Literary referenceLaurence Sterne. A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy
Summary
This is one of a number of illustrations created by Véra Willoughby (1870-1939) for an edition of Laurence Sterne's A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy, published in 1927. It was long considered that Willougby was born in Hungary but this was a fabrication apparently to appear more interesting. She was in fact from South Norwood and attended the Slade School of Art in London. In 1917 she met a much younger man, Peter Llewelyn Davies, who had been the inspiration for J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. Davies went on to become a publisher, commissioning her to create the illustrations for A Sentimental Journey and other texts.

The image relates to the novel's final chapter, entitled The Case of Delicacy. Parson Yorick is obliged to share his hotel room with a lady and her maid, so they meet to draw up a set of house rules. "We sat down to supper; and had we not had more generous wine to it than a little inn in Savoy could have furnished, our tongues would have been tied up, till necessity herself had set them at liberty - but the lady having a few bottles of Burgundy in her voiture sent down her fille de chambre for a couple of them..." Yorick and the lady finally retire to separate beds and a night of erotic tension, with the maid close at hand.

Willoughby also produced a number of theatrical designs and illustrations in the early 1920s, using the name Vera Petrovna.

Bibliographic references
  • Victoria and Albert Museum, Department of Prints and Drawings and Department of Paintings, Accessions 1951, London, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1962.
  • Laurence Sterne. A Sentimental Journey Through France & Italy, by Mr. Yorick. London: Peter Davies, 1927. (The illustration by Véra Willoughby appears between pp.196-197).
Collection
Accession number
E.84-1951

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
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