© Lee Miller Archives, England 2010. All rights reserved.
Roland Penrose, London, 1949
1949
Following the war, and eighteen months working in Europe, Miller returned to London in 1946 and her partner, Roland Penrose. Since photographing Joseph Cornell in 1933, creating an image which merged his profile with one of his ‘objects’, Miller had enjoyed photographing artists with their work. This includes the likes of Oscar Kokoschka, Jean Arp, and Henry Moore, alongside her iconic portraits of Pablo Picasso. This image depicts Penrose in his studio surrounded by examples of his work. He is concentrating on his palette, brush in hand, as though contemplating his next choice of colour. Characteristic of Miller’s ability to frame her sitters, Penrose’s profile is outlined against the white area of his canvas that is yet to be painted.
