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Lot Essay
George Montgomery (1916-2000), was one of Hollywoods first and most successful freelance actors, starring in Westerns and action movies throughout the 1940s and 50s, bar a brief spell in the Army Air Corps. At the height of his popularity, George attracted as much publicity for his acting, as for his liaisons with glamorous stars, such as Ginger Rogers, Hedy Lamarr (to whom he was briefly engaged) and singer Dinah Shore (whom he married in 1943). After his retirement from the film business, he devoted himself to his love of painting, furniture-making and sculpting bronze busts, including one of his close friend Ronald Reagan.
The present works, previously in the collection of George Montgomery, are prime examples of Shepherds work from the 1980s, when he was at the peak of his career. Shepherd first developed his iconic front-on view of elephants in the 1960s, and subsequently used the composition to create some of his most powerful depictions of the great animals he so admired, such as The Welcome Storm. In After the rains, Shepherd has rendered a superb homage to the atmosphere, light and wildlife of the African plains.
David Shepherd is internationally renowned as one of the most gifted contemporary painters of wildlife, and has also played an important role in wildlife conservation. He first visited Africa in 1949 when he went to Kenya with the intention of becoming a game warden. This ambition was not realized, and he decided instead to become a painter and returned to England. In the 1950s he studied with Robin Goodwin and many of his early works were painted in London. In 1960, Shepherd returned to Kenya with the Royal Air Force to paint two aircraft pictures for the R.A.F. officers mess in Nairobi. It was during this trip that the officers encouraged him to paint something other than the planes that they flew each day. From that moment, Shepherd has focused on painting the wildlife of Africa, as well as traveling extensively throughout the world to record endangered species in their natural habitats.
The present works, previously in the collection of George Montgomery, are prime examples of Shepherds work from the 1980s, when he was at the peak of his career. Shepherd first developed his iconic front-on view of elephants in the 1960s, and subsequently used the composition to create some of his most powerful depictions of the great animals he so admired, such as The Welcome Storm. In After the rains, Shepherd has rendered a superb homage to the atmosphere, light and wildlife of the African plains.
David Shepherd is internationally renowned as one of the most gifted contemporary painters of wildlife, and has also played an important role in wildlife conservation. He first visited Africa in 1949 when he went to Kenya with the intention of becoming a game warden. This ambition was not realized, and he decided instead to become a painter and returned to England. In the 1950s he studied with Robin Goodwin and many of his early works were painted in London. In 1960, Shepherd returned to Kenya with the Royal Air Force to paint two aircraft pictures for the R.A.F. officers mess in Nairobi. It was during this trip that the officers encouraged him to paint something other than the planes that they flew each day. From that moment, Shepherd has focused on painting the wildlife of Africa, as well as traveling extensively throughout the world to record endangered species in their natural habitats.