EXHIBITION OF SIR FRANCIS GRANT SKETCHES

LONDON, 19 NOVEMBER-19 DECEMBER 2025

Having recently been alerted to an upcoming  exhibition and sale of some of Sir Francis Grant’s sketches at Dickinson Gallery, 58 Jermyn Street, London SW1Y 6LX , I contacted William Bayliss, who is organising the exhibition, and called in to the gallery for a chat with him and to give him a copy of my book.

Will very kindly showed me some of the many framed and unframed sketches from some of Sir Francis’s sketch books before they are put on display in a newly refurbished room. It was fascinating to be able to see how Sir Francis not only reflected his observations on daily life but also made preparatory sketches for his portraits and larger equestrian works.

Here are links to the two catalogues (one for framed and the other for unframed sketches):

https://issuu.com/simondickinson/docs/francis_grant_-_a_society_sketchbook_framed_catal

https://issuu.com/simondickinson/docs/dickinson_-_francis_grant_a_society_sketchbook_u

The gallery website is: http://www.simondickinson.com/

Exhibitions of Sir Francis’s work are very rare (the last major exhibition, which celebrated the two hundredth anniversary of his birth) was at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in 2003.