Basil Rakoczi

Galerie Raymond Suillerot, Paris;
Private collection

The picture is in original, unrestored condition. The paint surface is dirty and should benefit from a light clean. There are a few isolated spots of paint losses, notably near the edges and there are some areas of separation to the darker pigments. The picture appears in good original condition overall, and should respond well to some conservation. Under ultraviolet light there appear to be no signs of retouching. Held in original, simple wood slip frame.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Basil Rakoczi and the White Stag Group made a significant contribution to Irish art when they arrived in Dublin in 1940, bringing a radical avant-garde outlook unknown to the artistic landscape of Ireland at that time. The importance of their arrival had been largely overlooked in Irish art history until the Irish Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition dedicated to the White Stag Group in 2005. 

The defining feature of the group was, as S. B. Kennedy wrote, their ‘combined interest in the artistic avant-garde with an enthusiasm for the newly emerging discipline of psychotherapy’ (IMMA, White Stag Group exh. cat., 2005, p.13). Rakoczi, of Hungarian-Irish parentage and born in London, moved to Ireland at the outbreak of World War II with like-minded friends Herbrand Ingouville-Williams and Kenneth Hall. There the trio formed the White Stag Group to promote the advancement of subjectivity in psychological analysis and art. Their first exhibition was held at Rakoczi’s flat at 34 Lower Baggot Street, Dublin to critical success, and they continued to exhibit throughout the war years with various artists joining them, notably Mainie Jellett. Their most influential exhibition was their Exhibition of Subjective Art in 1944, for which the leading English art critic Herbert Read wrote the catalogue introduction, praising the ‘fresh vigour’ of the works, which he saw as being part of ‘the main stream of European culture’. Included in the show was Patrick Scott who had just emerged on the artistic scene, described by Rakoczi as, ‘the most original, delightful and best artists here in Ireland’ (Rakoczi, Journal, updated entry, 1943) and Hall as, ‘by far the most gifted painter I have ever known’ (Hall to Lucy Wertheim, letter 11 January 1944).  

The group disbanded in 1945, following the end of the War and the untimely death of Ingouville-Williams from illness and Hall's suicide the following year. However during their short period in Ireland, they swiftly ingratiated themselves in the Dublin community and their lasting impact was to bring a fresh perspective to a conservative art world. They ‘paved the way for a broader consensus in Irish painting’ and a more liberal artistic atmosphere in the 1950s and 60s under which a new generation of artists could flourish (S.B. Kennedy, op. cit., p.43). 

In the present work, the strong pyschological element - the blind man and the owl - and the abstract forms clearly demonstrate Rakoczi's European heritage, absorption of post-war expressionism and his pervading interest in creative psychology.