Original Modern British Art oil on board painting
Untitled (Sunbathers) by David Holt (1968)
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Printing Details
Painted in September 1968, this is an oil on board in a wooden frame (but not glazed). The frame measures 62 × 79.5cm and the painting is 58 × 76cm.
This work of modern British art is untitled, but shows two sunbathers and windcheater on a sandy beach. One figure's face is detailed with light pencil work and their colouring blends with the sand whilst the windcheater's bold colours provide a depth to the painting. The style of painting belongs firmly in the late-1960s, blending elements of Pop Art and expressionism but showing the dexterity of an artist trained in traditional art forms.
Signed and dated by David Holt lower right, and with the artist's label to the reverse.
David Holt (1928–2014). Born in Hythe, Kent. Painter and Lecturer in Art. After National Service, he trained at the Canterbury School of Art, the Hammersmith School of Art and the Royal Academy Schools where he was awarded a medal for drawing and the Knapping Prize. He joined a studio-workshop with Gerald Holtom (designer of the CND symbol) in 1958 where he designed and produced proscenium curtains for schools. In 1958 he was awarded a Harkness Fellowship and travelled across America, producing many drawings and prints of the Pueblo Indians and their life-dance in Santa Fe in New Mexico, where he also worked with artist Agnes Sims. He returned to England in 1960 and continued to paint and work on large textile appliques for schools, churches, and private houses including Spade House in Kent, the former home of H G Wells.
He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 1962, and in 1964 was commissioned to design and make a large textile applique 'Christ in Majesty' which still hangs in the chapel of Christ Church College in Canterbury.
He was Head of Art at Canterbury Christ Church University until his retirement in 1995. He exhibited widely in the UK and the States and worked with many art societies and summer schools across East Kent.
His work can be found in both private and public collections throughout the UK and America, including the Yale Centre for British Art. His painting "Coastal Watcher" was recently used for the dustwrapper on Modernism and Memory: Rhoda Pritzker and the Art of Collecting (Yale University Press, 2016).
Condition
The painting and frame are in good condition, with some minor surface abrasion and marks, and similarly to the frame. However the overall impression is of a visually arresting image and in a distinct style.
Please note due to size and weight, I am unable to post to Asia and Australia.
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