Important Notice

Lot 87

 

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When he first arrived in 1949, Souza found England a bleak and inhospitable land of scarcity, suffering from the after-effects of World War II. Souza himself struggled with the deprivation that poverty brings during his first few years in the country. Edwin Mullins, the artist’s biographer, notes that, in 1954, “…he was on the point of going back to India. It seemed the only way he could go on painting, for at least in India he could sleep on... When he first arrived in 1949, Souza found England a bleak and inhospitable land of scarcity, suffering from the after-effects of World War II. Souza himself struggled with the deprivation that poverty brings during his first few years in the country. Edwin Mullins, the artist’s biographer, notes that, in 1954, “…he was on the point of going back to India. It seemed the only way he could go on painting, for at least in India he could sleep on the street if necessary, and live off rice. In England it was too cold to sleep on the street, even if the police would have allowed it, and rice cost more than he could readily afford” (Souza, Anthony Blond Ltd., London, 1962, p. 23).

However, Souza’s fortunes were to change dramatically in 1955, and by 1961, the artist was ebullient. He had won both critical and commercial success through his shows and publications, and things were finally looking up. This feeling is reflected in an important series of townscapes executed between 1961 and 63, in which the present lot is included. These pieces, generally painted on canvas rather than board, had a flatter application of colour – a shift away from Souza’s previous, almost architectural constructions of heavy impasto. Another unique characteristic of these works was the diminished fury of Souza’s line; though passionate, it reflected a precision that, till now, had only graced the artist’s drawings.

The present lot, perhaps inspired by the English countryside, is a peaceful lakeside vista. Nestled between two hills, the box-like houses on the shore seem at one moment sheltered, and at the next vulnerable and about to topple into the water. Richly detailed roofs and brick walls stand testament to the new meticulousness of Souza’s black line, and the mottled grey-blue surface of the lake, mirroring the sky, to his thin layered treatment of pigment.

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