.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Winifred Nicholson had a close relationship with her father-in-law William Nicholson. On the eve of her marriage, he wrote to her: 'My Dear Winifred, I am so sure that Ben will have a perfect wife that I must send you my love tonight and a line to tell you how happy I am about everything. See you at breakfast!!! Yours affectionately, William Nicholson' (Sir William Nicholson letter to Winifred Nicholson, 4 November 1920).
When Ben and Winifred stayed at Sutton Veny, William’s house in Wiltshire, in the early 1920’s, there were discussions about painting which Winifred described later : '''Yellow ochre is a good highlight,'' said Father William, ''don’t you think so Rosie?'' I had not yet spoken but I lifted my voice at that – ''I use Yellow Ochre for my dark''' (see A. Nicholson (ed.), 'Winifred Nicholson, Yellow Ochre - William Nicholson', Unknown Colour, Paintings, Letters, Writings, by Winifred Nicholson, London, 1987, pp. 77-80). Not only did they discuss painting, but William and Winifred painted the same jug of flowers, each from a different side (see J. Nicholson (ed.), Art and Life: Ben Nicholson, Winifred Nicholson, Christopher Wood, Alfred Wallis, William Staite Murray 1920-1931, London, 2013, pp. 62-63). Winifred described the visit as a memorably happy time: ‘William and Ben made jokes that fly and one never remembers. I cannot recall one of them, and yet they sparkled with wit and laughter all around us’ ((A. Nicholson, Unknown Colour: Paintings, Letters, Writings by Winifred Nicholson, London, 1987, p. 77).
Winifred made a number of paintings while staying at Sutton Veny, including Flowers – Sutton Veny and Dressing Table, Sutton Veny, (op. cit. 67) which both have notably large areas of white paint. These works had a marked influence on William whose works became lighter at this time (see D. Robinson, William Nicholson: Paintings, Drawings and Prints, Arts Council, 1980, p. 13). There are many similarities between William and Winifred’s work. Both painted quickly, economically and with great fluency, often completing pictures in one sitting. Both loved to paint flowers, which for Winifred held ‘the secret of the universe', choosing simple everyday scenes whose simplicity belies their hidden meaning. And both their paintings have a serene timeless quality.
During the 1920s and 1930s Winifred made a number of portraits of family members and other people that she was close to, so it was natural that she should paint William. And very probably her portrait of him dates from this visit to Sutton Veny. What she wrote about him might almost be applicable to her: ‘His eye would detect and appreciate the finest gradation of light and shade, his brush could handle the finest nuance with consummate skill. This harmony of hand and eye and surroundings constituted his art’ (op. cit. 77) . Winifred’s portrait of William is a tribute to a remarkable painter and a touchingly close painting friendship between the two.
When Ben and Winifred stayed at Sutton Veny, William’s house in Wiltshire, in the early 1920’s, there were discussions about painting which Winifred described later : '''Yellow ochre is a good highlight,'' said Father William, ''don’t you think so Rosie?'' I had not yet spoken but I lifted my voice at that – ''I use Yellow Ochre for my dark''' (see A. Nicholson (ed.), 'Winifred Nicholson, Yellow Ochre - William Nicholson', Unknown Colour, Paintings, Letters, Writings, by Winifred Nicholson, London, 1987, pp. 77-80). Not only did they discuss painting, but William and Winifred painted the same jug of flowers, each from a different side (see J. Nicholson (ed.), Art and Life: Ben Nicholson, Winifred Nicholson, Christopher Wood, Alfred Wallis, William Staite Murray 1920-1931, London, 2013, pp. 62-63). Winifred described the visit as a memorably happy time: ‘William and Ben made jokes that fly and one never remembers. I cannot recall one of them, and yet they sparkled with wit and laughter all around us’ ((A. Nicholson, Unknown Colour: Paintings, Letters, Writings by Winifred Nicholson, London, 1987, p. 77).
Winifred made a number of paintings while staying at Sutton Veny, including Flowers – Sutton Veny and Dressing Table, Sutton Veny, (op. cit. 67) which both have notably large areas of white paint. These works had a marked influence on William whose works became lighter at this time (see D. Robinson, William Nicholson: Paintings, Drawings and Prints, Arts Council, 1980, p. 13). There are many similarities between William and Winifred’s work. Both painted quickly, economically and with great fluency, often completing pictures in one sitting. Both loved to paint flowers, which for Winifred held ‘the secret of the universe', choosing simple everyday scenes whose simplicity belies their hidden meaning. And both their paintings have a serene timeless quality.
During the 1920s and 1930s Winifred made a number of portraits of family members and other people that she was close to, so it was natural that she should paint William. And very probably her portrait of him dates from this visit to Sutton Veny. What she wrote about him might almost be applicable to her: ‘His eye would detect and appreciate the finest gradation of light and shade, his brush could handle the finest nuance with consummate skill. This harmony of hand and eye and surroundings constituted his art’ (op. cit. 77) . Winifred’s portrait of William is a tribute to a remarkable painter and a touchingly close painting friendship between the two.