Lloyd Branson (American, Tennessee, 1861-1925) oil on board portrait depicting Mrs. Walter Thurman Lay (Christine Godfrey Lay) member of the family who founded Lay Packing Company, Knoxville, TN in 1907. Portrait depicts a woman with brown hair with a pearl drop necklace, wearing a black pleated organdy and white lace dress, holding a spray of pink flowers and seated on a garden bench in a garden of flowering shrubs. Portrait is signed and dated “Branson 1917″ lower right. Likely the original frame. Black and white photograph of the subject signed by Branson also included with the portrait. Frame: 20 3/4″ H x 17 3/4″ W., Sight: 16 1/2” H x 13 1/2′ W. Note: Subject is the consignor’s grandmother. Biography (courtesy James A. Hoobler, Tennessee State Museum): Enoch Lloyd Branson was best known for his Southern portraits and depictions of East Tennessee history. He moved to New York in 1873 to study at the National Academy of Design, where he won a first prize in 1875. In a partnership with Frank McCrary from 1885 to 1903, Branson became a leader in the East Tennessee arts community. He was a mentor to Catherine Wiley and is credited with discovering Beauford Delaney. Provenance: Descendant of W. T. Lay, Knoxville, TN, patron of Lloyd Branson. Condition: Overall surface grime. Minor losses to frame at outside corners. Condition: Overall surface grime. Minor losses to frame at outside corners.