Colin Middleton, R.H.A. 1910-1983

Jas Mooney, Belfast

Rooted in Surrealism, Middleton's oeuvre demonstrates an interesting eclecticism and Salvador Dali was an important early influence. The radiant and mosaic-like effect of both Uin and King, Queen, Prince and Princess (lot 138) would also suggest that Middleton was familiar with Paul Klee's watercolours executed after his visit to Tunisia with Auguste Macke and Louis Molliet in 1914 where he was overwhelmed by the intense light.  Klee wrote, ' colour has taken possession of me; no longer do I have to chase after it, I know that it has hold of me forever. That is the significance of this blessed moment. Colour and I are one. I am a painter'.  In works such as Remembrance of a Garden (1914, Coll. Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Dusseldorf), the multi-coloured squares reverberate across the composition and the viewer is lured into an imaginary world of light, colour and tone.  This effect is echoed in Uin as the upright figures stare out at the viewer, enticing them into the realm of Middleton's imagination, brimming with dazzling colours and extraordinary forms.

In a fitting parallel to Klee's visit to Tunisia, Middleton went to Perth, Australia in 1972 on a bursary from the Arts Council and was similarly inspired by the dramatic landscape and intense light. Moreover, he came into contact with Aboriginal Art and the four figures of Uin clearly pay homage to the forms he experienced there.  He went on to Barcelona in 1973 and the result of both journeys was a final series of works entitled The Wilderness Series. Most probably executed circa 1972-3, the present work effortlessly combines both abstract and representational form to create a large scale composition that is a powerful manifestation of Middleton's talent as an artist.