Abstract composition
Watercolour
1936 (painted)
1936 (painted)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Abstract composition of rectangular shapes
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Abstract composition (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Gouache on paper |
| Brief description | Watercolour, Abstract composition, by Ben Nicholson, gouache on paper, 1936. |
| Physical description | Abstract composition of rectangular shapes |
| Dimensions |
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| Styles | |
| Gallery label | Ben Nicholson 1894-1982
Gouache, 1936
Signed and dated, on the back, 1936
In 1934 Nicholson visited the studio of Piet Mondrian, the Dutch artist whose abstract work was based on grids. In 1936 he began to make non-representational coloured paintings based on rectangles. Their forms appear to be superimposed in space. These are key works in the emergence of geometric abstract painting in Britain.
Gouache on paper
Purchased 1961
Museum no. P.2-1961 |
| Historical context | This gouache is one of a series of paintings based on rectangular forms and are refinements of a still-life of 1924 (Painting - Trout) in which the subject matter was reduced to simple overlapping planes treading a fine balance between the motif and pure abstraction. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | P.2-1961 |
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| Record created | December 15, 1999 |
| Record URL |
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