© The William Roberts Society, London

Kramer's philosopher is a portrait of 'religious conscience' conveyed in a modernist idiom with strongly contrasting planes of black and white. The artist had strong links with the Vorticists (although by 1922 this short-lived movement had ceased to exist) and also identified with Cubism which, he wrote, 'succeeds in conveying the idea of a dynamic force' (Leeds Mercury, 1928). This print marks a high point of Kramer's modernist style and is one of his most recognisable and successful images. However, the edition was never numbered or closed, enabling the artist to sign and sell copies over many years.