ADRIAN HEATH. Mysterious and Sensual

ADRIAN HEATH Mysterious and Sensual

A selection of works on paper and card executed between 1963 and 1991

Adrian Heath - one of the best artists in England, with an intelligence, a set of values, and an accomplishment roughly comparable to Robert Motherwell’s qualities in America’ Bryan Robertson, Spectator, 6 May 1966

This year we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Adrian Heath (23 June 1920, Maymo, Burma - 15 September 1992, Castelnau de Montmiral, France) one of Britain's most acclaimed abstract painters of the post-war era.

It is unexpectedly difficult to associate Heath’s schematic preparatory drawings with particular paintings because the initial plan becomes heavily overlaid in the painting process. He meticulously surveyed the area of his canvas, prospecting for new compositional possibilities. The dry accounts he gives of the drawings made around the time of his first one-mas show at the Redfern Gallery in 1953 do not do much to prepare one for the paintings themselves; he describes them as ‘measured diagrams illustrating the progressive displacement of the areas that had themselves been derived from the format of the canvas’.

In the first half of the 1960’s a constant and very traditional reliance on drawing as a preliminary to painting’ became the fundamental element in his approach to his work, and remained so, in spite of various changes of style, for the rest of his life.

As the paintings themselves became more spontaneous and casual in appearance Heath was working from numerous landscape and figure drawings, sketch after sketch done at speed; a few of these would be selected as the subject of new drawings, usually in another medium and often after a considerable passage of time during which their original significance had vanished. And if at a later stage the painting became ‘confused or ran out of steam’, he would make more drawings from the painting itself to help ‘clarify my intentions or to formulate new ideas’.

The works on paper in various combinations of oil, gouache, ink, watercolour, collage , crayon and sometimes household paint, are full of unambiguous romantic feeling that is a little reminiscent of Graham Sutherland’s drawings of the 1940s.

This new exciting online exhibition provides the opportunity to view previously unseen small works on paper and card executed between 1963 and 1991.

September 2020

1 Composition 1963 Gouache on paper 22.5 x 20 cm / 8 7/8 x 7 7/8 inches Signed and dated ’63

2 Composition 1963 Acrylic and gouache on paper 30 x 22 cm / 11 ž x 8 ž inches Signed and dated

3 Composition 1965 Gouache on card 21.5 x 22.5 cm / 8 ½ x 8 7/8 inches Signed and dated ‘65

4 Composition c.1968 Crayon, pencil and acrylic on paper 27.5 x 18.5 cm / 10 7/8 x 7 Âź inches

5 Study ‘Barekody’ 1970-71 Acrylic and pencil on card 30.5 x 30.5 cm / 12 x 12 inches Signed with initials and dated ‘71’; inscribed and dated ’70-71’ verso

6 Composition c.1971 Crayon, pencil and acrylic on paper 28 x 24 cm / 11 x 9 ½ inches

7 Composition (31/10/74) 1974 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 30 x 25 cm / 11 ž x 9 7/8 inches

8 Composition (31/10/74/a) 1974 Crayon and pencil on card 27 x 25.5 cm / 10 5/7 x 10 inches Signed and dated ’74 verso

9 Composition (JR 11/73 + I/74) 1974 Acrylic and pencil on card 27 x 25 cm / 10 5/8 x 9 7/8 inches

10 Composition 1974 Gouache and pencil on card 25 x 20 cm / 9 7/8 x 7 7/8 inches

11 Composition (18/10/75/a) 1975 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 27.5 x 25.5 cm / 10 7/8 x 10 inches

12 Composition c.1975 Gouache and pencil on card 24 x 23 cm / 9 ½ x 9 inches

13 Composition (27/2/77/c) 1978 Gouache, crayon and pencil on card 25 x 23.5 cm / 9 7/8 x 9 Ÿ inches Signed with initials and dated ’78 verso

14 Composition 1978 Acrylic and pencil on card 31.5 x 24 cm / 12 3/8 x 9 ½ inches Dated ‘12/3/78’ verso

15 Composition (1/5/78/g) 1978 Gouache and pencil on card 26 x 25 cm 10 Âź x 9 7/8 inches

16 Wenvoe (29/4/78/a) 1978 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 27 x 22.5 cm / 10 5/8 x 8 7/8 inches Signed with initials, inscribed and dated ’78 verso

17 Composition (1/5/78/g) 1978 Crayon and pencil on card 25 x 24 cm / 9 7/8 x 9 ½ inches

18 Composition (13/9/78/a) 1978 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 25 x 23.5 cm / 9 7/8 x 9 Âź inches

19 Composition 1978 Gouache, crayon and pencil on card 27.5 x 25 cm / 10 5/8 x 9 7/8 inches Signed with initials and dated ‘78 verso

20 Composition c.1978 Crayon, pencil and acrylic on paper 35 x 25.5 cm / 13 ž x 10 inches

21 Composition c.1978 Gouache and pencil on paper 20 x 15 cm / 7 7/8 x 6 inches

22 Composition c.1978 Gouache, crayon and pencil on card 26 x 25 cm / 10 Âź x 9 7/8 inches

23 Composition c.1978 Gouache and pencil on card 24 x 28.5 cm / 9 ½ x 11 Ÿ inches

24 Composition c.1978 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 26.5 x 24.5 cm / 10 ½ x 9 5/8 inches

25 Composition c.1978 Gouache and pencil on card 28.5 x 27 cm / 11 Âź x 10 5/8 inches

26 Composition c.1978 Gouache and pencil on card 31 x 16 cm / 20 Âź x 6 Âź inches

27 Composition c.1978 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 30 x 24 cm / 11 ¾ x 9 ½ inches

28 Composition 1979 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 17.5 x 15 cm / 6 7/8 x 6 inches Signed with initials and dated ’79 verso

29 Study for Fagans (25/6/78 b) 1979 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 26.5 x 25.5 cm / 10 ½ x 10 inches Signed with initials and dated; signed and inscribed verso

30 Composition (21/1/79 /e) c.1979 Gouache, crayon and pencil on card 30 x 22.5 cm / 11 ž x 8 7/8 inches

31 Composition c.1980 Crayon, pencil and acrylic on paper 35 x 25.5 cm / 13 ž x 10 inches

32 Composition c.1980 Acrylic and pencil on paper 35 x 25.5 cm / 13 ž x 10 inches

33 Composition c.1980 Acrylic and pencil on paper 35 x 25.5 cm / 13 ž x 10 inches

34 Composition 1982 Gouache and acrylic on card 27.5 x 25 cm / 10 7/8 x 9 7/8 inches Signed and dated ‘82

35 Composition 1982 Crayon, pencil and acrylic on card 26.5 x 24.5 cm / 10 Ÿ x 9 5/8 inches Signed with initials and dated ’82 verso

36 Composition 1982 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 22.5 x 21.5 cm / 8 7/8 x 8 ½ inches Dated ’82 verso

37 Composition c.1982 Gouache, and pencil on card 24.5 x 23 cm / 9 5/8 x 9 inches

38 Composition (25/10/a) c.1982 Gouache and pencil on card 26.5 x 24 cm / 10 ½ x 9 ½ inches

39 Composition c.1982 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 23.5 x 23 cm / 9 Âź x 9 1/8 inches

40 Composition c.1982 Acrylic on card 26.5 x 25 cm / 10 ½ x 9 7/8 inches

41 Composition c.1982 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 24 x 23.5 cm / 9 ½ x 9 ¼ inches

42 Composition (T13 12/12/6_ G) c.1982 Gouache and pencil on card 28 x 24 cm / 11 x 9 ½ inches

43 Composition (18/12/83/b) 1983 Gouache and pencil on card 26 x 20.5 cm / 10 Âź x 8 Âź inches

44 Chard 1983/1984 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 20 x 25 cm / 7 7/8 x 9 7/8 inches Inscribed and dated ‘83/84 verso

45 Study ‘Couerve’ No.27 1984 Acrylic and pencil on card 30 x 19.5 cm / 11 ¾ x 7 ¾ inches Signed and dated

46 Chard 1984 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 20 x 26 cm / 8 x 10 ¼ inches Dated ’84 verso

47 Chard, Spring No.1 1984 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 20.5 x 25.5 cm / 8 1/8 x 10 inches Signed with initials and dated; signed and dated ’84 verso

48 Chard, Spring No.2 1984 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 20 x 25.5 cm / 8 1/8 x 10 inches Signed and dated; signed and dated ’84 verso

49 Chard, Autumn 1984 Acrylic, gouache and pencil on card 21 x 26.5 cm / 8 ¼ x 10 ½ inches Signed with initials and dated; signed, inscribed and dated ’84 verso

50 Composition (T 5 25(g)/3) 1985 Gouache and pencil on card 21.5 x 21.5 cm / 8 ½ x 8 ½ inches Signed with initials and dated ‘Dec 85’ verso

51 Composition (T 7 13.3/b) c.1985 Gouache and pencil on card 27 x 20 cm / 10 5/8 x 7 7/8 inches

52 Composition c.1985 Gouache and acrylic on card 25.5 x 20.5 cm / 10 x 8 ¼ inches

53 Composition 1987 Acrylic and pencil on card 40 x 36.5 cm / 15 ¾ x 14 ¼ inches Dated ‘28/10/87’ verso

54 Composition 1987 Acrylic and pencil on card 32.5 x 27 cm / 12 ¾ x 10 5/8 inches Dated ‘87’ verso

55 Composition (T 8) 1987 Acrylic and pencil on card 33.5 x 28.5 cm / 13 ¼ x 11 ¼ inches Dated ‘16/8/87’ verso

56 Composition c.1987 Acrylic and pencil on card 38 x 34.5 cm / 15 x 13 ½ inches

57 Composition c.1987 Acrylic and pencil on card 41 x 21.5 cm / 16 x 8 Âź inches

58 Composition c.1987 Acrylic and pencil on card 22 x 18 cm / 8 5/8 x 7 1/8 inches

59 Study for Buci 1988 Acrylic and pencil on card 38 x 32 cm / 15 x 12 5/8 inches Signed with initials and dated; inscribed verso

60 Composition 1988 Acrylic and pencil on card 41 x 33 cm / 16 1/8 x 13 inches Dated ‘April 88’ verso

61 Composition (T9-29.10 (C)) 1988 Pencil, ink and acrylic on paper 40 x 36.5 cm / 15 ¾ x 14 3/8 inches Signed and dated ‘88’ verso

62 Composition (T 10) c.1987 Acrylic and pencil on card 21.5 x 17.5 cm / 8 ½ x 6 7/8 inches

63 Composition c.1988 Acrylic and pencil on card 39.5 x 29.5 cm / 15 5/8 x 11 5/8 inches

64 Composition c.1988 Acrylic and pencil on paper 38 x 35.5 cm / 15 x 14 inches

65 Composition (T 5) c.1988 Acrylic and pencil on card 23 x 20 cm / 9 x 7 7/8 inches

66 Study (I) Dirdal 3 1989 Acrylic and pencil on card 38 x 33 cm / 15 x 13 inches Signed, inscribed and dated ‘Aug 89’ verso

67 Study (For a Painting) 1989 Acrylic and pencil on card 45 x 37 cm / 17 ž x 14 ½ inches Signed with initials and dated; inscribed and dated verso

68 Mauli (T II 22/..)

1991 Gouache and pencil on card 28 x 25 cm / 11 x 9 7/8inches Inscribed and dated ’91 verso

To accompany online exhibition Adrian Heath: Mysterious and Sensual. A selection of works on paper and card executed between 1963 -1991, from 25 September 2020 © ALAN WHEATLEY ART, 22 Mason’s Yard, Duke Street St. James’s, London SW1Y 6BU, www.alanwheatleyart.com All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without first seeking the written permission of the copyright holders.

Artworks © The Estate of Adrian Heath. Alan Wheatley Art Research and catalogue design by Iwona Chrościelewska

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