On View at Pall Mall

ON VIEW AT PALL MALL

ON VIEW AT PALL MALL

40/41 Pall Mall, Third Floor

London sw1y 5 jg (by appointment)

TelephoNe: 020 7930 9293

emAil: info@theninebritishart.co.uk

weBsiTe: www.theninebritishart.co.uk

ON VIEW AT PALL MALL

Our philosophy has always been to showcase different aspects of British art from the 1950s to the present day. This inaugural exhibition in our new gallery exemplifies that approach, with lesser-known artists exhibited alongside significant names from the Modern British era.

Patrick Heron's multiple-edition Garden Plate (cat 13) comfortably sits with the spectacular canvas Sixteen by Twenty (cat 11). Both display the artist’s fantastic use of colour and are very diversely priced.

Important works by Barbara Hepworth and Terry Frost highlight our enduring interest in St Ives artists. Their successor, Trevor Bell, who returned to St Ives after two decades in the United States, appropriately supports them.

Martin Bradley has long been one of our favourite artists, and we have chosen to display Totem (cat 3) for the first time in twenty years to remind us of his long and fascinating career. Martin sadly put down his brushes for the last time in 2023 at the age of ninety-two, having spent his later years living in Japan.

Brian Wall and Tommy Rowe were both born in the Modern era and have significant connections with Cornwall; one is now globally recognised, and the other enjoys his sculpting quietly in Scotland. Maquette for Early Yellow (cat 26) and Pen Enys II (cat 25) may be aesthetically different, but they have parallels in their simplicity of design.

Cat 10 Square & Circle

Barbara Hepworth and Cat 26 Maquette for Early Yellow

Brian Wall

With our contemporary selection, we stay with our Gallery artists, including Leigh Davis, who is currently working on his next exhibition scheduled for the autumn, and Jonathan Hooper, who is pursuing several exciting collaborations in Italy. Gary Wragg closes the catalogue with two works from the 'swinging sixties' (cat 27 & 28), highlighting his recent inclusion at the Castlefield Gallery, Manchester, in 40 Years of the Future: Painting, where his work is showing together with John Hoyland and Tricia Gillman until 23 June 2024.

We hope you enjoy the works included in the show and look forward to your visit to Pall Mall.

All paintings and sculpture are available for sale on receipt of this catalogue

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Cat 5 Scillonian Form

Leigh Davis (detail)

Catalogue 1

Craigie Aitchison 1926–2009

Goatfell Sunset

titled label verso oil on canvas 15 x 10 cm (6 x 4 in) framed: 34 x 29 cm (13 x 11 in)

PROVENANCE

Private collection, 2009–2023

EXHIBITIONS

London, Timothy Taylor Gallery, in association with Waddington Galleries

Craigie Aitchison Paintings, 9 July – 28 August 2009

Goatfell is on the Isle of Arran, in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland. This distinctive triangular mountain, the highest on the island, can be seen from Lamlash, where Aitchison enjoyed many childhood holidays. Although he spent much of his life in London, he always remembered his Scottish heritage, and the Isle of Arran inspired some of his best landscape paintings.

Catalogue 2

Trevor Bell 1930–2017

Quiet Florida Image

signed, titled and dated 1983 on canvas overlap oil on canvas 61 x 61 cm (24 x 24 in) presented without frame

PROVENANCE Private collection, 1997–2022

EXHIBITIONS

Sarasota, Hodgell Gallery, Trevor Bell, The Florida Years of Light and Colour 7 February – 6 March, 1997

Bell spent the years between 1972 and 1996 teaching and painting in Florida before returning to St Ives. While in the US, he painted some highly vibrant works, which he called his ‘heatscapes’. These works directly reflected the subtropical climate and the profusion of colour in his surroundings.

Quiet Florida Image, so-called for its lack of gestural intensity, is a classic example of his work from this period.

Catalogue 3

Martin Bradley 1931–2023 Totem

signed and dated 1965 titled label verso oil on wood

151 x 23 cm (59 x 9 in) framed: 171 x 43 cm (67 x 17 in)

EXHIBITIONS

London, England & Co, Martin Bradley: Paintings 1950–1970 10 November – 1 December 1988, cat no 32

Bradley was fond of using unusual supports for his paintings. This resilient old floorboard provided a robust surface, upon which he added his symbolic references, and was an apt shape for the title of the artwork. During a conversation with his friend Bill Hopkins in 1988, he said, "Everything in my art reflects the joy of existence and the sheer miraculousness of that fact."

Catalogue 4

Alan Davie 1920–2014

Parrot Idly Dreaming

signed and dated Nov 1960 verso titled on stretcher verso oil on canvas

102 x 122 cm (40 x 48 in) framed: 120 x 140 cm (47 x 55 in)

PROVENANCE

Gimpel Fils, 1961

Private collections, 2011–2024

EXHIBITIONS

London, Gimpel Fils, Alan Davie, March – April 1961

Los Angeles, Esther Robles Gallery, Alan Davie, 18 December 1961 – 6 January 1962

London, Alan Wheatley Fine Art, To Uncover the Hidden Unknown, 16 June – 22 July 2011, cat no 23

LITERATURE

Alan Bowness, Alan Davie, published by Lund Humphries 1967, cat no 309

Catalogue 5

Leigh Davis b 1976

Scillonian Form

signed also signed, titled and dated 2023 verso oil on panel

40 x 68 cm (16 x 27 in)

framed: 53 x 81 cm (21 x 32 in)

Scillonian refers to any characteristic of the Isles of Scilly, which lie just off the coast of Cornwall. Davis has spent many years sketching and painting the archipelago's topography, and this classic example is brimming with the islands' shapes and colours.

Catalogue 6

Leigh Davis b 1976 Pulpit Rock, St Mary's signed also signed, titled and dated 2023 verso oil on panel 60 x 100 cm (24 x 39 in) framed: 66 x 106 cm (27 x 42 in)

In this almost referential study of Pulpit Rock, one of the most prominent granite formations on the south-east tip of St Mary's, time-weathered boulders are depicted in greys and umbers. On numerous occasions, Davis has visited the largest island in the Isles of Scilly, drawing inspiration from the remarkable topography.

Catalogue 7

Robert Fogell b 1963 Connected Form

stamped with initials number 1 from an edition of 5 cast in 2023 polished bronze on a stone base 31 x 13 cm (12 x 5 in)

This sculpture from Robert Fogell is a variation on the highly successful Ellipse series. Conceived and cast in 2023, the bronze displays an inherent understanding of positive and negative space, with strident edges softened by flowing polished curves.

Catalogue 8

Richard Fox b 1965

Steel Ravel I

signed and titled on underside of sculpture number 1 from an edition of 9 cast in 2022

stainless steel on stained oak base 31 x 17 cm (12 x 7 in)

The continuous line of Steel Ravel I highlights the fluidity with which its form achieves harmony and balance. Fox's typically elegant composition encourages the viewer toward tactile engagement; rotating the work on a central spindle allows it to be viewed from multiple perspectives.

Catalogue 9

Terry Frost 1915–2003 Black, White & Orange

signed, titled and dated 1963 verso oil on canvas

122 x 92 cm (48 x 36 in)

framed: 142 x 112 cm (56 x 44 in)

PROVENANCE

Belgrave Gallery, circa 1992

Private collection London, 1994–2011

Private collection USA, 2011–2024

LITERATURE

David Lewis, Terry Frost, Scholar Press 1994, illustrated page 165

Frost moved to Banbury, where he found inspiration in the heraldic imagery and chevrons from the Battle of Edgehill, displayed at Compton Wynyates. These, along with the introduction of new road traffic signs that year, influenced his art to move away from the bobbing boats of St Ives and the stone walls of the Dales. Chevrons and circles now became the main focus of his paintings.

Catalogue 10

Barbara Hepworth 1903–1975

Square & Circle

signed and dated 1963 titled verso oil and pencil on gesso-prepared board 92 x 46 cm (36 x 18 in)

framed: 107 x 61 cm (42 x 24 in)

PROVENANCE

Private collection Edinburgh, 2006–2016

Private collection USA, 2016–2024

EXHIBITIONS

Zurich, Gimpel Hanover Galerie, Barbara Hepworth Sculpture & Drawings, November 1963 – January 1964

London, Gimpel Fils, Barbara Hepworth, May – July 1966, cat no 51

LITERATURE

Alan Bowness, Barbara Hepworth Drawings from a Sculptor’s Landscape, published by Cory, Adams & Mackay Ltd, 1966, cat no 55

Catalogue 11

Patrick Heron 1920–1999

Sixteen by Twenty: March 9-12, 1981

signed, titled and dated 1981 verso oil on canvas

41 x 51 cm (16 x 20 in) framed: 46 x 56 cm (18 x 22 in)

PROVENANCE

Waddington Galleries, London Private collection, 2011–2024

EXHIBITIONS

London, Riverside Studios, Patrick Heron Paintings, September–October 1981, cat no 21

Heron predominantly used the colours in his paintings for the title, but in this work, the size has taken on an unusual importance. A recurrent theme from 1975 through to 1981, the series displays a desire for the surface to have a rhythmic texture, emphasising the brushwork as much as the colour.

Catalogue 12

Patrick Heron 1920–1999

28 January 1999: I

titled and dated label verso gouache

19 x 27 cm (7½ x 10½ in)

framed: 36 x 44 cm (14 x 17 in)

PROVENANCE

Waddington Galleries, London Private collection to 2023

Heron's gouaches were emphatically not preliminary studies or sketches for his oil paintings but artworks in their own right. His use of a fluid medium gave spontaneity and visual movement to the composition, as demonstrated in 28 January 1999.

Catalogue 13

Patrick Heron 1920–1999

Garden Plate

signed, titled and dated 1991 verso from an edition of 500 bone china plate with enamel colours 31 x 31 cm (12 x 12 in)

PROVENANCE

Commissioned by the National Art Collections Fund

Produced by Wedgewood

Patrick Heron's delight in the gardens of Eagle’s Nest, his Cornish home near Zennor, inspired a series of highly successful paintings in the 1950s. He returned to the subject again in the 1990s with numerous gouaches and designed this vibrant ceramic plate. An example of this edition is in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Catalogue 14

Jonathan S Hooper b 1962

Leskernick Fields No 4

signed, titled and dated 2020 verso oil on panel 51 x 61 cm (20 x 24 in) framed: 57 x 67 cm (22 x 26 in)

Jonathan Hooper grew up in Cornwall, surrounded by the influences and atmosphere of the coast and moorland. In Leskernick Fields on Bodmin Moor, Hooper recounts the experience of being 'in' a landscape rather than merely observing it.

His father was a gliding companion of Peter Lanyon, whom Hooper cites as being particularly important to his development as a painter.

Catalogue 15

Jonathan S Hooper b 1962 Atmosphere (7 layers)

signed, titled and dated 2020 verso oil on panel 51 x 51 cm (20 x 20 in) framed: 53 x 53 cm (21 x 21 in)

Hooper's paintings explore the restlessness and experience of landscape, using the layering of paint as a metaphor for laying down memories. In Atmosphere (7 layers), the crisscrossing and interweaving waves of texture, colour and form disrupt the familiar signifiers of land, sea and air, creating complex surfaces that can simultaneously be ambiguous and harmonious.

Catalogue 16

John Hoyland 1934-2011

25.5.74

signed on canvas overlap and dated 25.5.74 acrylic on canvas 183 x 168 cm (72 x 66 in) framed: 185 x 170 cm (73 x 67 in)

During the 1970s, John Hoyland produced artworks that were characterised by layers of paint with rich impasto. These paintings are entirely abstract and possess a unique physicality.

They have a strong fauvist quality, and Hoyland displays his mastery as a colourist by using bold and daring colour combinations.

Catalogue 17

Albert Irvin 1922–2015

Blenkarne 4

signed and dated 1994 titled label verso gouache

58 x 76 cm (23 x 30 in) framed: 78 x 96 cm (30 x 37 in)

PROVENANCE

Gimpel Fils, London

Galerie Wasserman, Munich Private collection London, 2017–2023

A dedicated and pioneering abstract painter of the post-war years, Irvin had achieved a degree of distinction by the late 1960s, making powerful and complex paintings with strong directional brushwork. Though he had used water-soluble acrylic paint since the early 1970s, Irvin enjoyed a resurgence of creativity with this medium in the 1980s and 1990s when he launched himself into colour with ever-increasing boldness. Blenkarne 4 is a perfect example of this exciting development.

Catalogue 18

Allen Jones b 1937

Dancing Couple

number 33 from an edition of 50 2014

etched brass and acrylic on corian base 41 x 28 cm (16 x 11 in)

PROVENANCE

London, Allen Jones Retrospective at the Royal Academy of Arts, 13 November 2014 – 25 January 2015

(with a Certificate of Authenticity signed by the artist)

A limited edition of fifty artworks was made in 2014 for inclusion in Allen Jones's retrospective exhibition, held at the Royal Academy in London between November 2014 and January 2015. The sculptures, produced to the artist's design and specification in collaboration with Lola Lely Studio, include a presentation box.

Catalogue 19

Peter Joyce b 1964

August

signed with initials and dated 2020 titled verso acrylic on panel

31 x 25 cm (12 x 10 in)

framed: 47 x 41 cm (18 x 16 in)

This vibrant, small work is a distillation of the light, heat, and colour of a summer's day. Joyce has a remarkable and instinctive talent for capturing atmosphere in paint, while working in his studio on the west coast of France.

Catalogue 20

Peter Joyce b 1964

Cut Pools

signed with initials and dated 2023 titled verso acrylic on panel 28 x 63 cm (11 x 25 in) framed: 44 x 79 cm (17 x 31 in)

Cut Pools relates to the Marais Breton Vendéen, a coastal area reclaimed from the sea where numerous basins or 'plan d'eau' were cut for salt harvesting. No longer in use, abundant wildlife has moved back into the large expanse of flat landscape and depending on the salinity, the colour of the water changes. These remote places are now filled with the sounds of bird life.

Catalogue 21

John Kingerlee b 1936 Grid Painting

signed with monogram titled label verso painted circa 2000-2004 oil on board

28 x 59 cm (11 x 23 in) framed: 40 x 71 cm (16 x 28 in)

provenance

Private collection, 2005–2019

LITERATURE

Jonathan Benington, Kingerlee, published in 2006 by Larry Powell Management, illustrated page 214

Kingerlee's Grid Paintings are at the core of the artist's oeuvre. Built up with numerous layers of paint, sometimes over several years, they reference his investigation of alternative ways of viewing landscape, where structure is introduced to natural form.

Catalogue 22

Jason Lilley b 1966

St Ives, Past Now, Now Passed

titled verso oil on board

26 x 35 cm (10 x 14 in)

framed: 46 x 56 cm (18 x 22 in)

PROVENANCE

Belgrave Gallery, St Ives, 2009 Private collection, 2009–2024

Inspired by the same unique light that drew so many painters to the burgeoning artistic community, Lilley depicts the interlocking rooftops of St. Ives in sharp relief, their contours highlighted by intense light and shadow. His linear compositions are not merely a representation of the town; they are drawn from a deep connection with the past and present of the Cornish peninsular.

Catalogue 23

Keith Milow b 1945

Drawing 89/30/100/D

signed and dated 1989 titled verso oil on copper

46 x 36 cm (18 x 14 in)

framed: 57 x 47 cm (22 x 18 in)

PROVENANCE

Private collection, 2012–2023

EXHIBITIONS

London, Nigel Greenwood Gallery, Keith Milow One Hundred Drawings 1988–1989, 24 May – 24 June 1989, illustrated

As part of the British avant-garde in the 1970s and 1980s, Keith Milow was renowned for his unique take on the concept of materiality. In his artwork 89/30/100/D, Milow employs a technique of layering oil paint onto copper and incorporates the surface's oxidisation. This creates a striking contrast between terracotta and aqua, while the oscillating ribbons of form in the piece create fluidity in an otherwise industrial surface.

Catalogue 24

John Plumb 1927–2008

Red Line, Yellow Line

signed and dated 1959 verso titled label verso oil on board

122 x 46 cm (48 x 18 in) framed: 124 x 48 cm (49 x 19 in)

PROVENANCE

Belgrave Gallery, London

108 Fine Art, Harrogate Private collection, 2006–2024

When Plumb enrolled at the Central School of Art in 1952, he was undoubtedly influenced and inspired by his teacher, William Turnbull, who became a close friend. His work developed rapidly through various stages, culminating in the pure abstraction of Red Line, Yellow Line, which would launch him into the 1960s and include him in the epochal ‘Situation’ exhibitions. His use of a solid surface of black paint heightens the intense and brilliant flashes of colour.

Catalogue 25

Tommy Rowe b 1941

Pen Enys II

signed, titled and dated 2023 on base number 6 from an edition of 9 polished bronze on slate base 23 x 7 cm (9 x 3 in)

This sculpture's elegant form is inspired by the natural deep cracks in the rocks at Pen Enys Point, a coastal headland located a few miles west of St Ives in Cornwall. It is a beautiful representation of Rowe's Cornish heritage.

Catalogue 26

Brian Wall b 1931

Maquette for Early Yellow

circa 1975

painted steel

20 x 15 cm (8 x 6 in)

PROVENANCE

The Artist, and thence by descent to the previous owner Private collection to 2023

EXHIBITIONS

Chris Stephens, Brian Wall, Momentum Publishing 2006, illustrated page 118 (final version),

In 1982, the Seattle Art Museum organised a retrospective exhibition for Brian Wall at the California State University, Stanislaus. Although most of the sculptures in this show were from the 1950s and 1960s, some later works were selected, including the brightly painted Early Yellow (1975). This maquette exemplifies Wall's preference for an industrialised aesthetic.

Catalogue 27

Gary Wragg b 1946

Light Green Interior

signed, titled and dated 1968 verso acrylic on linen 102 x 84 cm (40 x 33 in) framed: 107 x 89 cm (42 x 35 in)

LITERATURE

Constant Within the Change, Gary Wragg, Five Decades of Painting, Volume I, published by Sansom & Co. Ltd, 2014, illustrated page 90

In the late 1960s, Wragg observed that his paintings had become more minimalistic. He focused on creating a central composition that conveyed a sense of stillness and calm, while the activity at the edges formed an enclosure for the colour field. Light Green Interior, and the sublime Salmon Pink Interior, (cat 28) are perfect examples of Wragg's 'Sixties' concept.

Catalogue 28

Gary Wragg b 1946

Salmon Pink Interior signed, titled and dated 1968 verso acrylic on cotton duck

102 x 76 cm (40 x 30 in) framed 105 x 79 cm (41 x 31 in)

LITERATURE

Constant Within the Change, Gary Wragg, Five Decades of Painting, Volume I, published by Sansom & Co. Ltd, 2014, illustrated page 90

ON VIEW IN PALL MALL

Published in 2024 The Nine British Art The Nine British Art 40/41 Pall Mall Third Floor London sw1y 5jg

Telephone: 020 7930 9293

Email: info@theninebritishart.co.uk

www.theninebritishart.co.uk

© The Nine British Art

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 and of the publisher.

Photography: Paul Tucker Photography

Design: Alan Ward @ www.alanjward.co.uk

Cover: Cat 17 Blenkarne 4 Albert Irvin (detail)

Back cover: Cat 4 Parrot Idly Dreaming Alan Davie (detail)