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William Roberts in addition to his World war I images, he is pobably best known for his contemprary scenes include people in various vibrant venues, boating, parks, picnics, raves, restaurants, busy street scenes as well as dingy interiors. Among these are a park scene with a school boy and his red cricket ball. There were also two portraits of school boys, one his son, 'John' (1930). John wears a plain school jumper (sweater). John was born in 1919 and thus would have been about 11-years old here. He would have attended a state primary. Another schoolboy painted at the same time wears a more elaborate uniform--probably a prep school. The other is an unidentified school boy, sometimes thought to be John, but probaly not. He looks to be about 10 years old aearing a prep school uniform. A Roberts expert tells us, "I agree about the age. But the portrait was evidently not commissioned – someone bought it from a Roberts exhibition in 1931 – so, if I'm right about the sitter not being the artist's son, it was perhaps most likely to be a friend of the son. If a schoolfriend then it certainly wouldn't be a prep-school badge – at no stage could the Robertses have afforded private education. It's all a bit of a mystery, like so much to do with Roberts." [Davenport] John studied physics at University College London, but tuned to the arts. He became a poet and guitar scholar.
Davenport, Bob. E=mail mssage (September 21, 2015).
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