Philipson painted several odalisques in the 1960s. Here, the woman, facing left, sits on a richly patterned bed; she is naked, other than her dark green trousers, and is fixing her hair, accompanied by a flute player and a peacock at right. The faceless figures are difficult to discern, and Philipson’s manipulation of watercolour, dissolving the edges between objects, gives the work the quality of a dream.

Odalisques as a fictional theme persisted for over a century. Even when approaching abstraction, their visual elements remained familiar and recognisable.

Lillian Browse (1906-2005); Lillian Browse Gift 1982

Drawing on Arabian Nights, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 22/02/2023-04/06/2023

Sir Robin Philipson Exhibition, Browse & Darby, London, 28/04/1993-29/05/1993

A Private Collection of late 19th and 20th Century Paintings and Sculpture, Courtauld Institute Galleries, London, 12/02/1983-10/04/1983

A Private Collection of late 19th and 20th century Paintings and Sculpture, Courtauld Institute Gallery, London, 1983
cat. no. 53

Watermark: none.

Collector's mark: none.

Inscription: Recto: lower right edge, brown ink, signed: "RPhilipson.". Verso: upper centre, graphite: arrow pointing upwards (at nothing discernible); lower left edge, graphite, acc.no. and title: "LB9. Odalisque & Flute Player"; lower right corner, graphite, acc. no.: "LB9". Separate paper, now in object file: pen and brown ink with price in graphite: "ROBIN PHILIPSON / 6, ST. VINCENT ST. / EDINBURGH. / "ODALISQUE AND / FLUTE PLAYER. / £AX". Separate paper, now in object file: pen and blue ink, the number circled and crossed out: "MISS 19 / BROWSE".

Label: Removed, now in object file: printed in black: "Browse & Darby / 19 Cork Street . London W1X 2LP / Telephone: 071-734 7984/5 / SIR ROBIN PHILIPSON EXHIBITION / 28th April - 29th May 1993 / Odalisque and flute player / watercolour / 11 x 7 3/4 inches / Exhibition number 15"; Detached from old mount, now added to curatorial file - card adherd to old mount with 'peppercorns' sticker: "Charles Belloc Lowndes, Browse & Darby, 19 Cork Street, London W1x 2LP, Tel:071-734 7984 Fax: 071-437 0750." and typed on Verso: "Lent by Private Collector"; Detached from old mount, now added to curatorial file: "The Fine Art Society (Limited), 148, New Bond Street, London, Printsellers, Publishers and Dealers in Works of Art. By Special Appointment to His Majesty the King. By Special Appointment to her Majesty the Queen.".