Sweet as an Orange

watercolour and pencil on paper

Signed lower left

17 x 26 cm. 26 x 35,5 overall size

Biography David Louis Ghilchick

David Louis Ghilchik (Botosani 1892 –1972 London), was a Romanian-British painter, and cartoonist for Punch Magazine and the Daily Sketch. He was born in Romania, the son of Abraham Josef Ghilchik, who traded in lace and linen, and his wife Sali. The family settled in Salford, England, in 1920, where Ghilchik enrolled at the Manchester School of Art. At the School he met fellow student Josephine Matley Duddle (1890–1981), marrying her in Chelsea in 1915.

During World War I Ghilchik served as a truck driver on the Italian front. He took part in the Art competitions at the 1928 Summer Olympics and 1932 Summer Olympics, competing for Great Britain in the mixed painting, drawing and watercolour categories. He exhibited at the Royal Academy, the New English Art Club and the Royal Society of Portrait Painters. His style is thought to have been influenced by Christopher Wood. His cartoons were popular especially during the war because his drawings were humorous and accurate.