JOHN PIPER CH (1903-1992) SELECTED PRINTS AND WORKS ON PAPER
Front cover: Stones and Bones XI (Levinson 300), 1978 (detail)
Street, Woodstock,
SELECTED PRINTS AND WORKS ON PAPER
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1 - 5 Cromwell Place,
+44 (0)1993 357077 | + 44 (0) 7939 566085 info@zuleikagallery.com | www.zuleikagallery.com
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JOHN PIPER CH (1903-1992)
Back cover: Sketch for a Construction, 1933 Opposite: Late Summer Flowers (Levinson 419), 1989 (detail) Park Oxfordshire OX20 1SP London, SW7 2JE
SELECTED WORKS
Watercolour over wax resist, pen and ink and pencil 35 x 49
The Hugh Wyndham Memorial, Silton, Dorset
MatterseycmPriory
The present work probably dates from the late 1940s and shows the seventeenth century memorial to Hugh Wyndham in the church at Silton. The Tate Gallery holds a number of the artist's photographs of the memorial which were probably taken at the same date as the present work.
Mattersey Priory, Nottinghamshire
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Watercolour with pen and ink, pencil and wax resist 28.5 x 24 cm
is the ruin of a former Gilbertine monastery that stands to the east of the village of the same name next to the River Idle in Nottinghamshire. As well as the present painting, Piper took a dramatic photograph of the priory which also focuses on the bleak, windswept setting of the subject matter. The artist himself donated his negative for the photograph to the Tate Archive in 1987 (inv.TGA 8728/27/26).
ON PAPER
Britten's setting of Thomas Mann's novella is one the composer's sparsest scores, strongly reflected in Piper's memorable sets, including the dark canalscapes and empty, receding beach, the subject of the present watercolour. This design would become the fitting background for the work's protagonist, Gustav von Aschenbach, as he admires the captivating beauty of the boy Tadzio, before finally falling victim to a deadly plague at the end of the opera.
The Prince of the Pagodas is Benjamin Britten's only ballet and was partly conceived by the choreographer John Cranko (with whom Piper also worked on a number of other projects). It was first performed at Covent Garden in 1957. The present work is Piper's original design for the first production's main backdrop. The inventive and colourful use of cut collage anticipates the artist's original abstract work of the late 1950s and early 1960s.
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John Piper's sets for Benjamin Britten's last opera Death in Venice represent the summit of his career as a designer for the theatre and of his long association with the English Opera Group of which he had been a co-founder. First performed at Aldeburgh in June 1973, the composer was by then too unwell to conduct the piece himself. The Piper family's association with the work is a strong one, with the artist's wife Myfanwy writing the opera's English libretto. For her too it was a culmination of a series of highly successful collaborations with Britten as his favoured librettist.
‘The Prince of the Pagodas’, 1957 Watercolour and gouache with wax resist and collage 15 ¾ x 28 ¾ in, 40 x 73 cm
‘Venice Beach’ for ‘Death in Venice’ Watercolour with gouache, 21 ¼ x 41 in, 54 x 104 cm
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Sketch for a Construction signed1933 in pencil (lower right), pen and chalk 5 ¼ x 6 ½ in, 13.5 x 16.5 cm
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Provenance with Marlborough Fine Art, 1964, (no.9, ill.p.19), purchased from the above by the present owner's father Literature A.West, John Piper, p.64 (ill.17) Exhibition London, Tate Gallery, John Piper, 13 Nov - 1984, cat no
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Executed in 1933, this work on paper by Piper was completed in the decade that was of utmost importance for British Modernism. During the 1930s Piper became close to Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson through the Seven and Five Society. First formed in 1919, Nicholson joined in 1924, and steered the society away from traditionalism, somewhat controversially, expelling all artists who did not conform to his view of modernism and were not equally committed to abstraction. Piper joined the society in 1934, the year after the present work was created, and we can clearly see in it his credentials for membership. Very few works on paper by Piper from this period exist, and arguably none as pioneering as Sketch for a Construction in their final form.
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Despite being a sketch, the work is highly finished and the complex interlocking concept appears complete.
This decade sees Piper creating highly experimental works, paintings and collages as well as works on paper, engaging with the ideas of his continental counterparts Braque and Picasso, in his quest to explore the boundaries of his medium. Ever evolving as an artist, the 1940s saw Piper move stylistically closer to the neo-romantic movement. Piper had a long career, spanning over seven decades which went on to include stained glass as well as a medium. His later work of landscapes and churches is perhaps most distilled in the public mindset when considering Piper, however it is important to consider these in the context of his work in the 1930s in order to fully understand the trajectory and virtuosity of this fabulous artist. These 1930s works are extremely rare and sought after and it is no surprise this work was requested for public display in the 1980 retrospective at the Tate as it is indubitably an exquisite example of this period of his practice. Sketch for a Construction 1933, has not been on public display since that exhibition and we are delighted here at Zuleika Gallery to be able to present it now.
From the Collection of the late Phil May
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The following works come from the portfolio, Stones and Bones that was printed by Kelpra Studio in 1978 and published by Kelpra Editions. In full it contains 27 screenprints over 44 pages which have been framed here. Some of the works are printed on both sides of the sheets, and in these cases the work has been framed with work visible on both sides of the frame, as indicated. The works we present here from this series come from a portfolio previously owned by Phil May, lead singer of the pop group The Pretty Things which was formed in the late 1960s. Phil May acquired the portfolio with his wife directly from the publisher and the contents page is not only signed and numbered by the artist but also dedicated to Mr and Mrs Phil May.
A copy of the front page is included with all of the works sold from this portfolio. Stones and Bones forms part of a series of unbound portfolios published by Kelpra Editions (other artists in the series are: Ian Tyson [1976], Joe Tilson [1976], Allen Jones [1977], Victor Pasmore [1977], Patrick Heron [1978], Gerd Winner [1978] and Gordon House [1978]).
7 Stones and Bones XXV (Levinson 314), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ¼ x 12 ¾ in, 489 x 324 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
8 Please note Stones and Bones II is in a double sided frame with Stones and Bones I and III visible on the reverse. Stones and Bones II (Levinson 291), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 26 15 /16 in, 505 x 684 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Screenprint, 18 1₈ x 10 ¾ in, 46 x 27.3 cm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Screenprint, 17 ½ x 13 ¾ in, 444 x 350 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones III (Levinson 292), 1978
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Stones and Bones I (Levinson 290), 1978
10 Please note Stones and Bones V is in a double sided frame with Stones and Bones VI and IV visible on the reverse. Stones and Bones V (Levinson 294), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 26 ¾ in, 505 x 680 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
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Screenprint, 19 ¼ x 13 ½ in, 489 x 343 cm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones VI (Levinson 295), 1978
Screenprint, 19 ¼ x 13 ¾ in, 489 x 350 mm Edition on 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones IV (Levinson 293), 1978
12 Stones and Bones XI (Levinson 300), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 27 9 /16 in, 505 x 700 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP Please note Stones and Bones XI is in a double sided frame with Stones and Bones X and XII visible on the reverse.
Stones and Bones X (Levinson 299), 1978
Screenprint, 18 ⁷₈ x 13 ¾ in, 480 x 350 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
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Stones and Bones XII (Levinson 301), 1978
Screenprint, 18 ³₈ x 12 ⁷₈ in, 467 x 327 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Please note Stones and Bones VIII is in a double sided frame with Stones and Bones IX and VII visible on the reverse.
14 Stones and Bones VIII (Levinson 297), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 24 ½ in, 505 x 622 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Screenprint, 14 11/16 x 13 ¾ in, 373 x 350 cm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones IX (Levinson 298), 1978
Stones and Bones VIl (Levinson 296), 1978
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Screenprint, 17 ⁷₈ x 13 ¾ in, 454 × 350 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
16 Stones and Bones XXIII (Levinson 312), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 27 9 /16 in, 505 x 700 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP Please note Stones and Bones XXIII is in a double sided frame with Stones and Bones XXII and XXIV visible on the reverse.
Screenprint, 13 ¾ x 19 ⁷₈ in, 350 x 505 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones XXIV (Levinson 313), 1978
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Stones and Bones XXII (Levinson 311), 1978 19 ⁷₈ x 13 ¾ in, 505 x 350 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
18 Please note Stones and Bones XX is in a double sided frame with Stones and Bones XXI and Stones and Bones XIX visible on the reverse. Stones and Bones XX (Levinson 309), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 27 9 /16 in, 505 × 700 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones XXI (Levinson 310), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 11 ¼ in, 505 x 286 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones XIX (Levinson 310), 1978 Screenprint, 19 ⁷₈ x 13 ¾ in, 505 x 350 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
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20 Stones and Bones XIV (Levinson 303), 1978 Screenprint, 18 ¼ x 26 ¼ in, 463 x 667 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Stones and Bones XIII (Levinson 302), 1978
Top left: Stones and Bones XV (Levinson 304), 1978
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Screenprint, 13 ¾ x 19 ⁷₈ in, 350 x 505 mm, Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Screenprint, 17 ¼x 10 ¼ in, 438 x 260 mm Edition on 50 plus 10 AP
Screenprint, 13 ¾ x 19 ⁷₈ in, 350 x 505 mm Edition of 50 plus 10 AP
Lower left: Stones and Bones XVI (Levinson 305), 1978
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Yellow Flowers (Levinson 392), 1987
Etching and aquatint, 40.5 x 54.5 cm, 67 x 80 cm (framed) Edition of 70
SELECTED WORKS ON PAPER
Late Summer Flowers (Levinson 419), 1989
Edition
Etching and aquatint in colours, 41 x 55 cm, 66 x 79 cm (framed) of 100
Arbroath Abbey (Levinson 407), 1988 Screenprint, 39.5 x 55 cm, 67.5 x 83.5 cm (framed) Edition of 100
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Flowers in a Black Pot (Levinson 410), 1988 Etching with aquatint, 55 x 39.8 cm, 80 x 64 cm (framed) Edition of 70
6 Park Street, Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1SP 1 - 5 Cromwell Place, London, SW7 2JE +44 (0)1993 357077 | + 44 (0) 7939 566085 info@zuleikagallery.com | www.zuleikagallery.com Opposite Stones and Bones XXII (Levinson 311), 1978 (detail) Please note Stones and Bones XXIII is in a double sided frame with Stones and Bones XXII and XXIV visible on the reverse.
