A drawing of Vanessa Bell by Duncan Grant that no scholar knew existed has come to light at Charleston, the former home and studio the two artists shared in Firle, East Sussex. Found among family papers while preparations were under way for Tate Britain's exhibition "Vanessa Bell & Duncan Grant: Inside Bloomsbury", the pencil and biro sketch is believed to be the final portrait Grant made of his lifelong friend, collaborator and sometime lover.

The drawing shows Bell in profile, her eyes closed and her head resting on a pillow, as though Grant were sitting beside her bed. It is inscribed 14 April 1961, although Bell had died a week earlier, on 7 April, at the age of 81, and was buried on 12 April in the churchyard of St Peter's in Firle. Darren Clarke, Charleston's head of collections and research, said Grant had a habit in later life of going back through his studio work and adding dates from memory, so the inscription is probably a near miss rather than an error: Grant most likely knew the drawing was made around the time of Bell's death and dated it as closely as he could recall.

Until now, a charcoal drawing from earlier in 1961 was thought to be Grant's last portrait of Bell. The family has donated the newly found work to Charleston, where it will enter the permanent collection as part of the museum's 50 for 50 campaign, which aims to secure 50 major Bloomsbury works by 2030. A specialist in the Bloomsbury group at Cambridge University described the portrait as extraordinarily moving, capturing a last moment of physical connection between the couple.

The drawing will not appear in the Tate Britain exhibition itself, although a small reproduction is expected in the catalogue. It will remain at Charleston for documentation and conservation before going on public display in the house for the first time in May 2027, when Grant's studio reopens after a 470,000-pound conservation project. The Tate show, which brings together more than 300 works and recreates the pair's Charleston studio, runs from 12 November 2026 to 11 April 2027.