The Life of T.E. Lawrence (Home)

He made a great drawing of it: it’s a very splendid work of art: better so than as portrait: because he’s turned you from flesh into metal, & made you so fierce and warlike that my blood runs cold to see it. It’s uncannily like, & yet so much harder. Perhaps it’s the being drawn which drew you so much together: or else it’s family cares. Any way time will make your face like that, & will leave the hair only a regretted memory. Who brushed it?

[…] It’s hard for a youngster to be so great an artist, & to know it, & to be unable to sell anything. However his head of you marks a step in advance of anything he’s done to date. It ought to go to the Tate Gallery. I suppose you don’t mind it’s bearing your name if shown? I took it to Kennington, who wondered at it. I’ll get Roberts to do two or three others: because by itself it would look too pointedly excellent.

Do you hate it? and did Mrs. N? Some day I’ll have prints of it for you.

-T.E. Lawrence to Colonel S.F. Newcombe, August 1922. Lawrence is referring to the above drawing, which he commissioned from war artist William Roberts for his book Seven Pillars of Wisdom.