Mother and Child 1915

Bequeathed by Dr William and Mrs Elizabeth Whitaker 2014. Bequeathed to the Leeds Art Fund in 2014 this painting is traditionally recognised as Kramer’s first major work and he described it as ‘one of my best and biggest pictures’. First displayed in 1915 at the New English Art Club Winter Exhibition it caused some controversy. Lucien Pissarro commented that ‘the picture of a mother openly breastfeeding her infant lacked taste’. The donor was Kramer’s doctor for a time and apparently he often paid his bills with his paintings. This example was bought as a wedding present for the donor’s wife in 1960.