.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Cecil King was largely self-taught as an artist - he had his first one-man show in 1959, but did not become a full-time artist until 1964, the year before Break Away was painted. With its animated brushstrokes and intense depth of colour to convey mood and movement, the present work brilliantly exemplifies King's early practice.
Cecil King is one of Ireland's most significant modern artists. He played a huge role in the advancement and appreciation of contemporary art in Ireland - co-founding the Contemporary Irish Art Society in the early 1960s and Rosc in 1967, which organised pivotal large scale international art exhibitions at a time when Ireland did not have a National Museum of Contemporary Art. In 1981, King had his first retrospective at the Hugh Lane Gallery and in 2021 they commemorated the centenary of his birth with another exhibition entitled Cecil King - Present in Time Future. In 2008 the Irish Museum of Modern Art held a major solo exhibition of his work, Cecil King - A Legacy of Painting.
Cecil King is one of Ireland's most significant modern artists. He played a huge role in the advancement and appreciation of contemporary art in Ireland - co-founding the Contemporary Irish Art Society in the early 1960s and Rosc in 1967, which organised pivotal large scale international art exhibitions at a time when Ireland did not have a National Museum of Contemporary Art. In 1981, King had his first retrospective at the Hugh Lane Gallery and in 2021 they commemorated the centenary of his birth with another exhibition entitled Cecil King - Present in Time Future. In 2008 the Irish Museum of Modern Art held a major solo exhibition of his work, Cecil King - A Legacy of Painting.