The RAL’s collection is perhaps best known for its beautiful views of the waterfront and its glimpses of local life – works that capture a particular place through landscape, activity, and atmosphere. Yet alongside these familiar scenes is another, quieter body of work: portraits that turn the artist’s attention away from the surrounding world and toward the interior lives of their subjects.

In graphite, ink, and other media, these drawings capture figures at rest: lounging, sitting, reclining, or simply pausing. Their gazes often drift beyond the edge of the page, their attention seemingly directed somewhere other than the moment at hand. These are not portraits of grand gestures or dramatic expressions. Instead, they linger on the subtle stillness of a person absorbed in thought.

Lost in Thought brings together these more intimate works to reveal another dimension of the collection. Removed from the bustle of the waterfront and the recognizable events of everyday life, these figures invite us to slow down and consider the quiet moments between them. Their poses and expressions leave room for speculation: What are they thinking? Where has their attention wandered? Are they remembering, imagining, waiting, or simply resting?

In these moments of pause, the drawings offer something universal. They remind us that a portrait need not tell us everything about a person. Sometimes, it is the distance between the sitter and the viewer – the unanswered thought, the averted gaze, the moment of stillness – that makes a portrait compelling.

This exhibition offers an opportunity to look beyond the collection’s familiar landscapes and discover these quieter encounters: portraits that ask us not simply to look at their subjects, but to wonder what might be happening within them.

Image: Conversation on the Beach, mezzotint on paper by Orville Peets (1884 – 1964) Rehoboth Art League Collections