Ben Nicholson

Isaacs Gallery, Toronto

Waddington Galleries, London

Sale: Christie's, New York, November 10, 1999, lot 631

Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Norbert Lynton, Ben Nicholson, London, 1993, no. 269, illustrated in color p. 283 (titled 1956, January (Zennor Head))

This work is in very good condition. The board is stable, floating in the frame. There are some small scattered spots of retouching along the framing edges, covering previous frame rubbing; there is a 3cm. line and a few very small spots of retouching in the dark brown area in the upper left, visible under UV. There are some small surface scuffs to the board, which are intrinsic to the artist's material. This work is in very good condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The long, horizontal format of Nicholson's earth-toned compositions were inspired by the rugged landscape of Cornwall in the south-west of England.  Nicholson moved to the region in 1939 to live with Barbara Hepworth in the artist's colony of  St. Ives.  During the ensuing two decades, he sketched and painted a variety of motifs based on his favorite places in the surrounding area, including Lelant, Mount's Bay and Zennor.

Nicholson was heavily influenced by the Cubists, and the deconstructed, geometricized elements of the present composition, which is actually a still-life of table wares, is a clear inheritor of that avant-garde tradition.  Its thematically disjunctive title, however, distinguishes Nicholson's picture from the analytic Cubist still-lifes of Braque, Gris or Picasso.  Norbert Lynton has observed the following about the present work in particular: "Landscape colours had already tended to overrun Ben Nicholson's still-life compositions, denaturalizing familiar goblets, jugs and vases.  This is most marked in 1956, January (Zennor Head), whose title refers us to the coast of west St. Ives" (N. Lynton, op. cit., p. 296).