Items Similar to Abstract Landscape Red Green - Scottish Abstract Expressionist art oil painting
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 16
William GearAbstract Landscape Red Green - Scottish Abstract Expressionist art oil painting1949
1949
About the Item
This stunning Scottish Abstract Expressionist oil painting is by noted Scottish artist William Gear. Painted in 1949 it is an early and significant painting which dates to the early part of his career. Entitled Abstract Landscape with Red and Green it was painted during Gear's time in Paris and involvement with COBRA. Mostly red and green shapes are incased in black on a vivid yellow background. A really pleasing composition to the eye and perfectly housed in an ebonised frame, it is an excellent example of Gear's work.
Signed and Dated '49 lower right. Inscribed, titled and dated verso.
Provenance: Cornish collection.
Condition. Acrylic on canvas 25 inches by 20 inches and in good condition.
Frame. Housed in an ebonised frame, 30 inches by 25 inches and in good condition.
Few British painters have played an active role in the modern abstract movement of post-war Europe. William Gear was the most passionate and committed exception. He continued the tradition of the Edinburgh-Paris axis established by J.D. Fergusson, Samuel Peploe and others, spending vital years between 1947 and 1950 living and working in Paris. Significantly, in recent years, he received the greatest acclaim in France, Germany and the Netherlands.
He was born in 1915 in Methil, Fife, into a mining family; the particular landscape of "pitheads, the sea, rocks, castles, trees, storms and poverty" marked his earliest identity with a place and probably remained the most influential to his art. Years later he recalled as a schoolboy visiting the local art gallery in Kirkcaldy and seeing 12 colourful still-lifes by Peploe. Art-history lessons during student years at Edinburgh College of Art, in particular Byzantine classes under David Talbot Rice, also influenced his concern for structure. This had as much to do with the formal language of painting as sheer delight in the medium itself. Gear never missed an opportunity to show people the merits of a well-constructed painting.
On a travelling scholarship in 1937, he chose to study with Fernand Leger, described by Gear as "a keystone for me, seldom abstract, rather a degree of abstraction". The Second World War interrupted these formative years and, by 1940, Gear had joined the Royal Corps of Signals. Dispatched to the Middle East, he still had the discipline to paint - mostly works on paper of damaged landscapes - with exhibitions in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Cairo as well as Siena and Florence.
His naturally robust and tenacious temperament was profoundly affected by visiting Bergen-Belsen, and this certainly influenced the later experiments with the black armature. As the British officer in Celle, working for the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Section of the Control Commission, he focused on securing the safety of the Berlin Art Collection in Schloss Celle, and organised an important series of modern art exhibitions, including the rejected work of Karl Otto Gotz. Only a few weeks before his death, this service to "democratic art and artistic freedom" was recognised in Hanover by a unique Leporello Award, appropriately instigated by fellow artists and presented by the Lower Saxony government.
Demobbed in 1947, Gear headed for Paris, where he established a one-room studio at 13 Quai des Grands Augustins. This exciting period saw him gravitating towards what he called "the freer, dramatic approach of abstraction lyrique" rather then "the dogmatic hard-edged school of Mondrian and De Stijl". Within a year there were exhibitions at two of the pioneering salons and a first one-man show at the Galerie Arc en Ciel.
At the same time inclusion in Cobra shows in Amsterdam and Copenhagen in 1949, alongside Constant, Corneille and Appel, underpinned his affiliation to a reinvigorated form of abstract expressionism. He worked at the time in the fluid medium of opaque water-colour, usually on card with pockets of intense colour on a white or neutral ground. While some pieces were purely abstract, others carried their own suggestion of landscape, or even a form of Celtic figuration.
The same year saw an exhibition at the Betty Parsons Gallery in New York, alongside Jackson Pollock. The impact of American abstract expressionism however remained a sore subject, which in conversation was usually dismissed with a curt reminder of what he and others were already painting in Europe.
The decision to return to England in 1950 was both personal and practical. Recently married to Charlotte Chertok, and with a baby, he had already secured in 1948 the first of a series of London exhibitions with the Gimpel Fils Gallery. The atmosphere surrounding the Festival of Britain also appeared to offer fresh opportunities.
Notoriously, Gear was awarded one of the Festival of Britain Purchase Prizes for Autumn Landscape, a large oil on canvas which took six difficult months to complete. The event produced written questions and answers in the House of Commons and a tirade of abuse from the national press, not to mention a topic for debate on the radio programme Any Questions. While the episode made him a household name, the longer-term effects were, arguably, more detrimental.
He chose not to live in London or join fellow abstract artists in St Ives, preferring the independence of a village in Kent between 1953 and 1958. This period saw the continued development of large landscape structures, as well as "side-roads" into sculptural subjects and minimalist colour paintings, which openly acknowledged the influence of Nicolas de Stael. These works have still to be properly exhibited. Mau-Mau (1953), for example, painted for the Contemporary Art Society but at the last minute withdrawn from display at the Tate Gallery, has its first London showing in the current golden jubilee exhibition at the Redfern Gallery.
Gear was out of critical favour for most of the 1960s and 1970s. He exhibited more irregularly, despite returning to the use of dark structures broken by selected movements and light-inflected primary colours. While contemporaries questioned his move to Eastbourne as Curator of the Towner Art Gallery (1958-64), Gear's response was to take on the Purchase Committee. He changed the local authority's collection policy from Victorian and local views to securing the foundation of a major collection of post-war British art.
His move to Birmingham came with the appointment as Head of the Faculty of Fine Art, Birmingham College of Art, in 1964, a post held until retirement in 1975, by which time he had become increasingly un- interested in the growing bureaucracy surrounding art education. His support and encouragement to artists living in Birmingham however continued with the purchases made for Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery on behalf of the Friends organisation (1987-94) as well as for his own personal collection. Most recently he instigated the idea of a gallery of modern art in Birmingham.
Fortunately, the last 15 years have also gone some way to reverse the years of neglect. Gear and Stephen Gilbert (also Scottish) were the only British artists included in the major Cobra 1948-51 exhibition at the Musee d'Art Moderne, Paris, in 1982. The Cobra enthusiast Karel van Stuijvenberg has been a prominent patron and, in 1995, Gear took delight in attending the opening of the Cobra Museum of Modern Art in Amstelveen, near Amsterdam. He was equally proud of his long overdue election to the Royal Academy in 1995, and in the last years relished working with the fluidity and strong colours of oil stick. Tessa Sidey.
Exhibited and held by worldwide galleries including The Tate.
- Creator:William Gear (1915-1997, Scottish)
- Creation Year:1949
- Dimensions:Height: 25 in (63.5 cm)Width: 30 in (76.2 cm)Depth: 2 in (5.08 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:London, GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU853113431742
About the Seller
5.0
Platinum Seller
These expertly vetted sellers are 1stDibs' most experienced sellers and are rated highest by our customers.
1stDibs seller since 2018
402 sales on 1stDibs
Typical response time: 1 hour
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: London, United Kingdom
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
More From This SellerView All
- New Vision 2 - British Canadian art 60's Abstract Expressionist oil paintingBy William John Bertram NewcombeLocated in London, GBAn original large abstract oil on canvas by British Canadian artist William John Bertram Newcombe. This stunning abstract expressionist oil is a bold, adventurous and confident abstr...Category
20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsMixed Media, Oil
- Midsummer - Scottish Abstract Expressionist exhibited art oil paintingBy Iain RobertsonLocated in London, GBThis striking exhibited large abstract oil painting is by noted Scottish artist Iain Robertson. Painted in 1998 and exhibited in the same year in London, it was completed just before he moved to Cornwall. Entitled Midsummer verso it is a riot of summery colours and heavy impasto and late twentieth century abstract expressionism. A really uplifting piece of art. Signed and inscribed with title and dated 1998 verso. Provenance. Solo show, 'Art First', London, 1998. Condition. Oil on Canvas. Size 60 x 24 inches Frame. Housed in surround frame, 62 inches by 26 inches and in good condition. Iain Robertson (b. 1955) was born in Cyprus but grew up in Edinburgh before studying art, 1978-1982. In 1993 he worked as Artist In Residence at Grizedale Sculpture Park before relocating to Cornwall where he now lives and works. He has retained studio 7 at Porthmeor Studios in St Ives, since 2007. Previously Robertson worked in Montgomery Street Studio, Edinburgh, 1991-1999. He has exhibited widely with numerous solo shows in the UK and Europe. His work is held in public and private collections in Germany, Denmark, Norway, Scotland, England, USA and Hong Kong. His work was included in the ‘Art Now Cornwall’ exhibition at TATE St Ives Spring 2007 and at the City Art Centre, Edinburgh, 2007. The recipient of a number of awards including Scottish Arts Council, British Council and Arts Council, Robertson was the first Scottish recipient of the Pollock Krasner Foundation, New York, in 1988. Notable exhibitions include, Contemporary Abstract Printmaking, Artists- Rachel Clark, Ian Davenport, Christopher Le Brun, John McLean, Mali Morris...Category
1990s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsOil
- Spring Passage - Scottish art Abstract Expressionist oil painting Cobra ParisBy William GearLocated in London, GBThis stunning Scottish Abstract Expressionist oil painting is by noted Scottish artist William Gear. Painted in 1950 it is an early and significant painting which dates to the early ...Category
1950s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsOil
- Irises - British Fifties Abstract Expressionist floral oil painting yellow greyLocated in London, GBThis superb British Abstract Expressionist oil painting is by noted artist Bernard Kay. It was painted in 1953 and is titled Irises. Painted in a loose style with a palette of bruise...Category
1950s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsOil
- Blue Psalm - British Fifties Abstract Expressionist exhibited art oil paintingLocated in London, GBThis superb British Abstract Expressionist oil painting is by noted artist Bernard Kay. It was painted in 1958 and is titled Blue Psalm. It is painted in a palette of blue tones with...Category
1950s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsOil
- Cosmos - British Fifties Abstract Expressionist art oil painting red white blueLocated in London, GBThis superb British Abstract Expressionist oil painting is by noted artist Bernard Kay. It was painted in 1957 and is titled Cosmos. The composition is loose block forms of colour in...Category
1950s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsOil
You May Also Like
- Modern Abstract Female Figure Statement 1990s Portrait Painting Large SignedBy Matthew SchaeferLocated in Milwaukee, WI"Abstract Woman" is an original oil painting by Matthew Schaefer. It depicts a woman in bright shapes and lines instead of solid form and naturalism. Matthew Schaefer's painterly sty...Category
1990s Abstract Expressionist Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Geometrical Abstract - Oil On Canvas by Giorgio Lo Fermo - 2021By Giorgio Lo FermoLocated in Roma, ITGeometrical Abstract is an artwork realized by Giorgio Lo Fermo (b. 1947) in 2021. Original Oil Painting on Canvas. Hand-signed and dated by the artist on the lback: Lo Fermo 21. ...Category
2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Geometrical Face - Oil On Canvas by Giorgio Lo Fermo - 2018By Giorgio Lo FermoLocated in Roma, ITGeometrical Face is an original artwork realized by Giorgio Lo Fermo (b. 1947) in 2018. Original Oil Painting on Canvas. Hand-signed and dated on the back. Hand-signed on the lower...Category
2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Blue Expressionism - Oil On Canvas by Giorgio Lo Fermo - 2020By Giorgio Lo FermoLocated in Roma, ITBlue Expressionism is an original artwork realized by Giorgio Lo Fermo (b. 1947) in 2020. Original Oil Painting on Canvas. Hand-signed, dated and titled on the back. Hand-signed a...Category
2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- The Bridge - Oil On Canvas by Giorgio Lo Fermo - 2008By Giorgio Lo FermoLocated in Roma, ITThe Bridge is an artwork realized by Giorgio Lo Fermo (b. 1947) in 2008. Original Oil Painting on Canvas applied on Plywood. Hand-signed on the lower left margin: G. Lo Fermo. Ve...Category
2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil, Plywood
- Blue and Black - Oil On Canvas by Giorgio Lo Fermo - 2020By Giorgio Lo FermoLocated in Roma, ITBlue and Black is an artwork realized by Giorgio Lo Fermo (b. 1947) in 2020. Original Oil Painting on Canvas. Hand-signed and dated by the artist on the lower left margin: G. Lo Fe...Category
2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
Recently Viewed
View AllMore Ways To Browse
Damaged Art
Greatest Modern Art
Living Room Abstract Painting
Scottish Modern
Large Abstract Art 1960s
Large Painting Abstract Figure
Black And White Abstract Expressionist Painting
William Green
Large Painting Modern Red
Red Modern Painting Large
French Abstract Painting 1950
1960s Abstract Expressionist Painting
Large White Abstract Oil Painting
Scotland House
Red Green 1960s
Art Moderne Light
Neutral Abstract Modern
Scottish Modern Art