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Lot Essay
STUDIES FROM IMPORTANT BODIES OF WORK
BY GRAHAM SUTHERLAND
The four works by Sutherland included in this collection (lots 141-142, 181-182) represent several dominant motifs the artist adopted from the late-1930s into the early 1950s, during the Second World War and in its aftermath. All but one of these motifs are represented by important oil paintings which inhabit prominent public art collections: Cactus from 1950 at the University of Michigan Art Museum see lot 181), Thorn Trees from 1945 in the Collection of the British Council (see lot 182), Entrance to a Lane from 1939 residing at the Tate, London (see lot 141).
Vibrant yellows and pinks of Head immediately recall the South of France, in particular Cap d’Ail, where the present work was created. Depicting the headlands there, the tone of Sutherland’s colour and execution are lighter and appear more playful than his wartime depictions of the landscape, indicating his delight in the fresh new perspective of the glowing Mediterranean atmosphere.
BY GRAHAM SUTHERLAND
The four works by Sutherland included in this collection (lots 141-142, 181-182) represent several dominant motifs the artist adopted from the late-1930s into the early 1950s, during the Second World War and in its aftermath. All but one of these motifs are represented by important oil paintings which inhabit prominent public art collections: Cactus from 1950 at the University of Michigan Art Museum see lot 181), Thorn Trees from 1945 in the Collection of the British Council (see lot 182), Entrance to a Lane from 1939 residing at the Tate, London (see lot 141).
Vibrant yellows and pinks of Head immediately recall the South of France, in particular Cap d’Ail, where the present work was created. Depicting the headlands there, the tone of Sutherland’s colour and execution are lighter and appear more playful than his wartime depictions of the landscape, indicating his delight in the fresh new perspective of the glowing Mediterranean atmosphere.