BEN NICHOLSON, O.M. (BRITISH, 1894-1982)

BEN NICHOLSON, O.M. (BRITISH, 1894-1982)
March 1948 (two gravestones, Hayle estuary)
signed, inscribed and dated twice 'Denis/from Ben Feb 58/Lelant 1948' (on the backboard)
pencil and oil wash on card
32 x 45.5cm. (12 1/2 x 18 in.)

Provenance
The Artist, whom gifted to Denis Mitchell in 1958, thence by descent to
Private Collection
Their sale, Bonhams, London, 6 March 2007, lot 133, where purchased by the present owner

Exhibited
London, Tate, Ben Nicholson, 13 Oct 1993-9 Jan 1994, cat.no.89 (ill.)
St Etienne, Musée d'Art Moderne, Ben Nicholson, 10 Feb-25 Apr 1994
Kendal, Abbot Hall Art Gallery, A Continuous Line: Ben Nicholson in England, 7 Jul-20 Sep 2008, which toured to De La Ware Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea and Tate, St Ives

Literature
Maurice de Sausmarez (ed.), Ben Nicholson, A Studio International Special, London, 1969, p.73
Peter Khoroche, Ben Nicholson, Drawings and Painted Reliefs, Lund Humphries, Aldershot, 2002, cat.no.34, p.54 (ill.)

The present work was gifted by Ben Nicholson to the sculptor Denis Mitchell.

ARR

“Painting and religious experience are the same thing. It is a question of the perpetual motion of a right idea“
(Ben Nicholson)

Nicholson had a close association with the village of Lelant, on the west side of Hayle estuary in Cornwall. In the 1920s, Nicholson visited St. Ives, which became a hub for modernist artists, and he was immediately drawn to the area's rugged landscape and unique quality of light.

In 1939, Nicholson and his wife, the artist Barbara Hepworth, moved to a cottage in Lelant, where they lived for several years. During this time, Nicholson continued to produce his signature abstract works, which were heavily influenced by his surroundings. He was particularly interested in the play of light and shadow on the rocky outcroppings and beaches around Lelant, with his work from this period often featuring his characteristic abstract forms and bold, graphic lines.

While living in Lelant, Nicholson also became involved in the local art scene, and he collaborated with other artists in the area to form the St. Ives Society of Artists. This group played an important role in promoting modernist art in Cornwall and helping to establish St. Ives as an important centre of artistic innovation in Britain.

The present work shows the artist toy with the stark contrast between the old and the new. The beauty of his much beloved rural and rugged Cornish landscape and sea on the left side of the composition, making way for modern developments in the pylons, industrial buildings and ship on the right. This takes place from the perspective of Lelant graveyard, the tombstones in the foreground a prominent reminder of this passing of time, and it’s effects.

Overall, Nicholson's association with Lelant was significant in the development of his artistic style, as well as in the promotion of modernist art in Cornwall. His work from this period is admired for its boldness, simplicity, and its ability to capture the unique character of the Cornish landscape.Click here to share: