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Lot Essay
While Jeffrey Smart has commented that technique rather than subject matter is his primary focus, it is, in some ways, a false distinction to separate the two. For it may be argued that the overwhelming allure of Smart's work lies in his ability to evoke a sense of narrative mystery through technical means; intriguing the viewer through his unique combination of style and content.
Stadium I is a quintessential example of Smart's art and contains many of the characteristic motifs and devices that recur in his paintings. The red and white striped poles of the stadium recall the colour scheme of the bollards that appear in his Autobahn paintings, while the presence of the single figure in the foreground is an often-used device that lends a sense of scale to the composition.
Another constant thematic refrain in Smart's paintings is an interest in humanity's impact on the environment. In this work, a contrast is set up between the grassy slopes that dominate the painting and the titular Stadium, which, in accordance with Smart's love of ambiguity, remains hidden beyond the horizon line, only one stand filled with spectators being visible.
It is typical of Smart that an event that could draw such a crowd is deemed un-picturesque, with the artist instead preferring to concentrate on the unseen and marginal events such as a woman strolling through a field or the flight of a flock of birds. The frozen flight of the birds reinforces the photographic quality of Smart's work, a quality that is conveyed through hyper-realistic technique and the suggestion of a moment captured.
The same field of yellow grass appears in paintings including Cooper Park I, 1962, The Listeners, 1965 and City Landscape, 1969 - 70 which is held in the collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Quartermaine noted that:
"In times of difficulty or when personal troubles were pressing, he has occasionally turned to still-life subjects, self portraits or paintings done from a model. The Stadium and the two paintings entitled The Walker from 1967/8 were done during such a troubled period, and Smart recalls how restful it was at the time to paint one by one the innumerable grass stems of the landscape. The pictures themselves are peaceful and composed" P Quartermaine, Jeffrey Smart, Melbourne, 1983, pp.43-44)
Smart uses many other technical devices to deepen the impression that this is no ordinary scene, including the low angle which gives the viewer a perspective that is out of the ordinary and the saturated colours of the work, with purplish tones in the sky and the golden sheen of the field further heightening the emotional intensity of the painting. As always, although it appears that the real action is invisible, taking place on the mysterious horizon, Smart urges us to re-consider the supposedly mundane, the unnoticed occurrences that happen on the perimeter, in order to capture the revelatory potential of everyday experience, which otherwise runs the risk of being overlooked.
We are grateful to Stephen Rogers, Jeffrey Smart's archivist, for his assistance with this catalogue entry
Stadium I is a quintessential example of Smart's art and contains many of the characteristic motifs and devices that recur in his paintings. The red and white striped poles of the stadium recall the colour scheme of the bollards that appear in his Autobahn paintings, while the presence of the single figure in the foreground is an often-used device that lends a sense of scale to the composition.
Another constant thematic refrain in Smart's paintings is an interest in humanity's impact on the environment. In this work, a contrast is set up between the grassy slopes that dominate the painting and the titular Stadium, which, in accordance with Smart's love of ambiguity, remains hidden beyond the horizon line, only one stand filled with spectators being visible.
It is typical of Smart that an event that could draw such a crowd is deemed un-picturesque, with the artist instead preferring to concentrate on the unseen and marginal events such as a woman strolling through a field or the flight of a flock of birds. The frozen flight of the birds reinforces the photographic quality of Smart's work, a quality that is conveyed through hyper-realistic technique and the suggestion of a moment captured.
The same field of yellow grass appears in paintings including Cooper Park I, 1962, The Listeners, 1965 and City Landscape, 1969 - 70 which is held in the collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Quartermaine noted that:
"In times of difficulty or when personal troubles were pressing, he has occasionally turned to still-life subjects, self portraits or paintings done from a model. The Stadium and the two paintings entitled The Walker from 1967/8 were done during such a troubled period, and Smart recalls how restful it was at the time to paint one by one the innumerable grass stems of the landscape. The pictures themselves are peaceful and composed" P Quartermaine, Jeffrey Smart, Melbourne, 1983, pp.43-44)
Smart uses many other technical devices to deepen the impression that this is no ordinary scene, including the low angle which gives the viewer a perspective that is out of the ordinary and the saturated colours of the work, with purplish tones in the sky and the golden sheen of the field further heightening the emotional intensity of the painting. As always, although it appears that the real action is invisible, taking place on the mysterious horizon, Smart urges us to re-consider the supposedly mundane, the unnoticed occurrences that happen on the perimeter, in order to capture the revelatory potential of everyday experience, which otherwise runs the risk of being overlooked.
We are grateful to Stephen Rogers, Jeffrey Smart's archivist, for his assistance with this catalogue entry