Walford Graham Robertson
Illustration — W. Graham Robertson by John Singer Sargent, 1894 Walford Graham Robertson (8 July 1866 – 4 September 1948) was a British painter, illustrator and author. He donated over 20 works of art to the Tate Gallery, London. "In the London of Beardsley and Beerbohm, Shaw and Henry James, Robertson was a promising presence in the art and theater worlds.
Also recorded as W. Graham Robertson
Walford Graham Robertson
John Singer Sargent · Public domain
- Born
- 1866. · London.
- Died
- 1948.
- Nationality
- United Kingdom and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
- Occupation
- painter, illustrator, writer and art critic.
- Languages
- English.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Illustration — W. Graham Robertson by John Singer Sargent, 1894 Walford Graham Robertson (8 July 1866 – 4 September 1948) was a British painter, illustrator and author. He donated over 20 works of art to the Tate Gallery, London. "In the London of Beardsley and Beerbohm, Shaw and Henry James, Robertson was a promising presence in the art and theater worlds.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Walford Graham Robertson (1866–1948) was a British and British art critic, illustrator and painter, among other activities. The art critic was born in London.
Languages used include English. Works by Walford Graham Robertson are held at National Portrait Gallery, Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum and Southampton City Art Gallery, among others.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Walford Graham Robertson. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q15980303 · wikipedia · W. Graham Robertson
In this article
Identity
Identity
Today the museums of England owe a debt to his taste and judgment", according to The New York Times. He was an important collector of art, especially William Blake. He wrote plays, novels and a memoir, Life Was Worth Living (1931). He painted and illustrated books. He designed costumes for Sarah Bernhardt and Ellen Terry. He was twice portrayed by John Singer Sargent. He was sociable, and knew many notable people including Oscar Wilde and artists. He was a source of witty quotes and anecdotes. The New York Times printed a biographical article about him in 2001. Immediately following his death, a catalogue of his Blake collection was published, and in 1953 a collection of his letters was issued. According to Cardiff University Professor Emeritus Peter Hunt, Robertson shared a house in London with the author Kenneth Grahame, while Grahame's wife and son lived in Berkshire.
Walford Graham Robertson is recorded as a citizen of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Recorded with the occupation stage painter.
Walford Graham Robertson, Sargent - W. Graham Robertson, c. 1894, nr. 307
John Singer Sargent · https: lastname= firstname= placeborn= placedied= artist=John+Singer+Sargent worktitle= collection=Private+collection action=Search author= title= year=
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1866
Walford Graham Robertson was born on 8 July 1866.
1948
Walford Graham Robertson died on 4 September 1948.
Primary material
Documents and archives
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q15980303: Walford Graham Robertson
General reference · Wikidata
reference work
- “W. Graham Robertson”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Tate Gallery (Tate.org.uk). 'W. Graham Robertson', John Singer Sargent. 2015-12-10.
- 2.Later Victorian Portraits Catalogue. National Portrait Gallery (NPG.org.uk). Walford Graham Robertson (1866–1948), Painter, illustrator, costume designer and playwright.
- 3.OAC: Online Archive of California (OAC.cdlib.org). W. Graham Robertson Papers: Finding Aid.
- 4.Notable Abodes (Notableabodes.com). Melbury Road, Holland Park, London.
- 5.Berman, Avis. ART/ARCHITECTURE: Not Just Another Pale Victorian Aesthete. The New York Times (NYTimes.com). 23 September 2001.
- 6.Jason Farago. Sargent: Portraits of Artists and Friends review – invention, sex and sadness. The Guardian. 2 July 2015.
- 7.Hunt, Peter. The Making of The Wind in the Willows. Bodleian Library, University of Oxford. 2018. 978-1-85124-479-9.
- 8.McCormick, Joseph Patrick. Scholar says The Wind in the Willows can be read as a "gay manifesto". PinkNews. 2018-01-28.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
authority record
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
The authorities additionally record the heading W. His recorded language was English. He was the child of Marion Greatorex Robertson.
Identity and origins
Recognition and collections
Work by Walford Graham Robertson is
National Portrait Gallery, Victoria and Albert Museum, Southampton City Art Gallery and Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Illustration
5,224 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- W. J. FennIllustrator
- W. Lindsay CableIllustrator
- W. S. GilbertIllustrator
- W. T. HortonIllustrator
- Wallace BermanIllustrator
- Wallace EdwardsIllustrator
- Wallace SmithIllustrator
- Wallace TrippIllustrator
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Walford Graham Robertson?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.