Keith Vaughan
Six Figures, 1975
pencil
27.5 x 20.5 cm
Sold
The work comes from a series of late drawings that Vaughan made which he called ''Graffiti Drawings' It is a vigorous, highly worked image composed of a series of powerful...
The work comes from a series of late drawings that Vaughan made which he called ''Graffiti Drawings' It is a vigorous, highly worked image composed of a series of powerful lines and energetic cross-hatchings. The anatomy of the figures is handled in an immediate and summary manner. Such drawings give voice to what John Ball describes as:
"... Keith's complex sexuality and his refined artistic vision. They are wonderfully evocative and masterfully concise. For me they're some of the finest things Keith produced - distilled rather like Beethoven's late quartets or Eliot's best poems - seemingly effortless yet packed with significance. There's such an economy of means - a few lines express an entire biography or a complex persona. Keith drew to work out his passions and make his emotional requirements concrete. Most are terribly personal and so very moving in their honesty; they're concerned with basic and often brutal human truths and examine complicated inter-relationships - what more can one ask of an artist? (Gerard Hastings, Keith Vaughan Four Decades of Drawing, exh. cat. London Gallery 27)
"The intense charge and neurotic quality of this work could, perhaps be explained by Vaughan's physical and emotional condition at that time. Two days after he executed this drawing, his journal reveals he discovered a growth which was subsequently diagnosed as cancer. "(Gerard Hastings, 2016)
"... Keith's complex sexuality and his refined artistic vision. They are wonderfully evocative and masterfully concise. For me they're some of the finest things Keith produced - distilled rather like Beethoven's late quartets or Eliot's best poems - seemingly effortless yet packed with significance. There's such an economy of means - a few lines express an entire biography or a complex persona. Keith drew to work out his passions and make his emotional requirements concrete. Most are terribly personal and so very moving in their honesty; they're concerned with basic and often brutal human truths and examine complicated inter-relationships - what more can one ask of an artist? (Gerard Hastings, Keith Vaughan Four Decades of Drawing, exh. cat. London Gallery 27)
"The intense charge and neurotic quality of this work could, perhaps be explained by Vaughan's physical and emotional condition at that time. Two days after he executed this drawing, his journal reveals he discovered a growth which was subsequently diagnosed as cancer. "(Gerard Hastings, 2016)
Provenance
The Artist's Estate, Prunella Clough, Professor John Ball, Private Collection UK, Sotheby's London 28 Sept. 2016 Lot 110, bt., John ConstableJoin our community of art lovers
Want to be the first to hear our news and get invitations to special events and private views? Leave us your email. We won't sell it, we won't pester you, that's a promise. We just to share with you about art.
* denotes required fields
We will process the personal data you have supplied to communicate with you in accordance with our Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe or change your preferences at any time by clicking the link in our emails.