Product Details
King John & Polar Bear by Raphael Balme (See the story below)
Limited Edition Print (taken from an original oil painting)
Edition 150
Signed and stamped on reverse.
Paper: 310gsm, archival quality, acid-free, aquarelle rag.
UNFRAMED PRINT SIZE: A2 / 420 x 594mm / 42 x 59.4cm / 16.5 x 23.4 inches
FRAMED SIZE (Oak, white, black, putty, all with mount): 558 x 732mm / 55.8 x 73.2cm / 22 x 28.8 inches
FRAMED SIZE (Deep brown, without mount): 528 x 702mm / 52.8 x 70.2cm / 20.8 x 27.6 inches
Frame options: Oak with mount, White with mount, Black with mount, Putty with mount, Deep brown without mount
Please note: Our framers are recognised by the Fine Art Trade Guild for their quality because the custom frames have tightly pinned corners, and are made from precision cut wood in England, made bespoke for each order. All our frames are glazed with our Clarity+ Perspex. It's cut from the highest quality acrylic sheet that's both crystal clear, but also safe and filters out 99% of UV light to protect the artwork.
Read more about our Fine Art Trade Guild Printers & Framers here
The Story
The Shop Floor Project has commissioned British artist Raphael Balme to create a series of oil paintings which celebrate historical figures with their exotic pets and, in the case of Virginia Woolf, their alter egos.
Expertly reproduced by our printers who are members of the Fine Art Trade Guild, the collection includes; Frida Kahlo & Fawn, King John & Polar bear, Empress Josephine & Orangutan plus Mozart & Starling among others...
King John's Polar Bear
During the reign of King John (1199-1216) a host of exotic animals began to arrive at the Tower of London. These gifts from foreign nobles created what became known as The Royal Menagerie. Over the years the animals included: an African elephant from Louis IX of France - arriving at the Tower by boat, a cannonball-throwing baboon and a pair of ostriches which, like most of the creatures at the Menagerie, were the first of their kind ever to be seen in Britain. The King of Norway gifted a polar bear which was said to be seen, taken on a lead, down to the Thames to hunt for fish.
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