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Lot Essay
In 1907 Laura and Harold Knight moved from Staithes in Yorkshire to Newlyn in Cornwall until 1919 when they settled in London. Since the late nineteenth century painters had been attracted to Newlyn by the romantic surroundings and the quality of light (see catalogue note to lot 25). It was here that Laura Knight met artists who would become her life-long friends: Sir Alfred Munnings (see lots 29-30), Ernest Procter and his future wife Dod Shaw, Samuel John Lamorna Birch and his family, and Harold and Gert Harvey.
In the warm and friendly atmosphere of Newlyn, Laura Knight's art developed and flourished. Lighthearted subjects painted with a new freedom and bright palette marked a dramatic departure from her Staithes work. She recalled: 'An ebullant vitality made me want to paint the whole world and say how glorious it was to be young and strong and able to splash with paint on canvas anything that one saw' (see C. Fox, Laura Knight, London, 1988, p. 34).
The present composition relates to Laura Knight's monumental oil, The Boys (1910; Johannesburg Art Gallery, see C. Fox, op. cit., pls. 21 and 22). Depicting young boys dressing around an upturned boat on Newlyn Quay, The Boys marked a turning point in the artist's career. When exhibited at the Royal Academy it attracted considerable admiration and was purchased for Johannesburg Art Gallery by Sir Hugh Lane, the greatest arbiter of contemporary taste.
In the warm and friendly atmosphere of Newlyn, Laura Knight's art developed and flourished. Lighthearted subjects painted with a new freedom and bright palette marked a dramatic departure from her Staithes work. She recalled: 'An ebullant vitality made me want to paint the whole world and say how glorious it was to be young and strong and able to splash with paint on canvas anything that one saw' (see C. Fox, Laura Knight, London, 1988, p. 34).
The present composition relates to Laura Knight's monumental oil, The Boys (1910; Johannesburg Art Gallery, see C. Fox, op. cit., pls. 21 and 22). Depicting young boys dressing around an upturned boat on Newlyn Quay, The Boys marked a turning point in the artist's career. When exhibited at the Royal Academy it attracted considerable admiration and was purchased for Johannesburg Art Gallery by Sir Hugh Lane, the greatest arbiter of contemporary taste.