Caught up in the Nets

Paintings of Williamstown were the subject of Perceval's first solo show at Australian Galleries, Collingwood in 1956. This exhibition was a great success and Perceval continued painting these local maritime scenes throughout his life. Caught up in the Nets displays the enjoyment Perceval derived from painting and the depth of his absorption in his work. He revelled in painting outdoors, in emulation of the Impressionists, where he could test and extend his skills. This painting captures the joyful immediacy of the late Williamstown works, with its use of bold primary colours, and their thick impasto application. "It is a kind of action painting controlled by visual intuition rather than by non-visual and subconscious processes of the mind." (B Smith, Australian Painting 1788 - 1990, Melbourne, 1991, p.322)