内容摘要："He went around on foot recording these scenes, like Park Street and Christmas Steps, and they are just fantastic.

"He went around on foot recording these scenes, like Park Street and Christmas Steps, and they are just fantastic.

According to Bonhams, Clare Leighton "was one of the very few artists admitted to his office and was given the opportunity to sit with on multiple occasions to sketch and paint his likeness".The works remained in the artist's collection until her death in 1989 in the US, after which it was passed down through her family.

She was introduced to Gandhi through her partner and British political journalist, Henry Noel Brailsford, who was a strong supporter of India's independence movement.In November 1931, Leighton showcased her portraits of Gandhi at an exhibition at the Albany Galleries in London.Though Gandhi did not attend the opening event, several representatives from the Indian delegation of the second Round Table were present.

Among them was Sarojini Naidu, also an eminent Indian independence leader, who was one of the key advisors to Gandhi at the meeting.The exhibition included a charcoal sketch of Gandhi, asleep in his office, along with the oil portrait that is now set to be auctioned.

About the painting of Gandhi, British Journalist Winifred Holtby wrote: "The little man squats bare-headed, in his blanket, one finger raised, as it often is to emphasise a point, his mouth

parted for a word that is almost a smile".Ms Harris became the new headteacher 18 months ago and said that at the time the school had a Requires Improvement grade.

"That was simply because the work on the curriculum and the academic side of things had lagged behind," she said."I was in a very fortunate position of being able to take on this wonderful community school in... the most stunning part of Oxford."

Her team introduced a new vision based on the Bible verse "they will soar on wings like eagles'' and developed the idea of three core values: adventurous, wise and encouraging."The murals were then about bringing that to life," she said.