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拍品专文
Painted in 1929 The Pink Box; a Portrait of Margaret Morris is one of Fergusson’s most important and erotically charged paintings and is emblematic of his artistic interests at this time. The work is both a celebration of the sensuality of the female figure and a dramatic rose -tinted symphony of contrasts and forms of still life. Invigorated by the lively artistic atmosphere, the picture was one of the largest and most complete works painted at Fergusson’s new studio in the Montparnasse district of Paris at Parc Montsouris.
Rich in warm smouldering colours and expressionistic brushstrokes, the influence of Fauves and Post-Impressionists, which informed the work of Fergusson and the other Scottish Colourists, are demonstrated in this glowing composition. Part of a group of works that changed the contemporary direction of Scottish art, The Pink Box marks a shift away from their 19th Century heritage towards a more modernist approach to painting. Heavily influenced by the work of Cézanne and Gauguin, this composition, painted with flat, boldly energetic brush strokes, is evident of the effect that the French avant garde had on the ‘new art’ of the Colourists, who now concentrated upon colour and rhythmic form rather than narrative.
Set against a dark background, the saturated warm tones and the simplification of the forms of the fruit, flowers and flesh glow with warm luminosity. Taking centre stage, Morris’ dark eyes, berry-stained full lips and remote expression suggests an ancient, sensual exoticism. Her face, lowered and cast into strong shadow is simplified and mask-like; echoing Man Ray’s famous photograph Noire et Blanche (1926) of Kiki-de-Montparnasse. Static like the figure behind her, the sculpture mimics Morris’ pose in its rhythmic fashion. Skin and stone glow, as if lit by candlelight, the bright colouring emphasises the sensual and celebratory mood of the image. Furthermore, the robust curves of the sculpture, with its heavy, incisive outlines, has been designed to accentuate her fertility and the regenerative power of women. At the same time, Fergusson was producing a series of striking terracotta figurines and sandstone carvings of female nudes, inspired by Cambodian and Indian Hindu works seen on Fergusson’s visit to the Trocadéro Museum in Paris. The nude remained central to Fergusson’s output throughout his career.
Fergusson’s painting takes its title from the small pink enamel box in the foreground. Temptingly placed at the edge of the frame, the pink box, was a recurring object in Fergusson’s works of this period; in works, such as La Bete Violette and Fleurs et Fruits both of 1910. The sumptuous surface textures and curves of fruit, stone and flesh are painted with swaths of dark- berry and rosy-pink pastel brushstrokes echoing an overtly feminine softness and Rococo sensibility. In The Pink Box, Fergusson celebrates Morris by depicting her as a Goddess of Fertility, with fruit and flowers arranged around her in the form of a shrine and suggestive of devotion.
Margaret Morris (1891-1980) first met Fergusson in 1913 when she was performing with her fellow dancers at the Marigny theatre in Paris. Morris and Fergusson’s colourful long-term relationship was deeply intellectual as well as personal, she shared Fergusson’s interest in eastern art, adopting the poses of the statues in her own dance performances. She had learnt classical Greek dance movement with Raymond Duncan, the brother of Isadora Duncan, and developed her own highly individual style of choreography which was focused on simple movement and free modes of expression. Regarded as one of the great pioneers of modern dance, Morris also leaves behind an artistic legacy, having painted from an early age being the daughter of an artist. A mutual friend of Fergusson and Morris, Holbrook Jackson arranged their introduction and there followed a lasting love affair, which permeated the rest of their lives. ‘Her dynamic personality and sensuous physicality captivated Fergusson, inspiring much of his subsequent work’ (K. Simister, Living Paint; J.D. Fergusson 1874-1961, Edinburgh, 2001, p. 55). Thus, The Pink Box is a testament to the passionate and emotive relationship between the artist and his muse, which stimulated Fergusson to create his finest works.
Rich in warm smouldering colours and expressionistic brushstrokes, the influence of Fauves and Post-Impressionists, which informed the work of Fergusson and the other Scottish Colourists, are demonstrated in this glowing composition. Part of a group of works that changed the contemporary direction of Scottish art, The Pink Box marks a shift away from their 19th Century heritage towards a more modernist approach to painting. Heavily influenced by the work of Cézanne and Gauguin, this composition, painted with flat, boldly energetic brush strokes, is evident of the effect that the French avant garde had on the ‘new art’ of the Colourists, who now concentrated upon colour and rhythmic form rather than narrative.
Set against a dark background, the saturated warm tones and the simplification of the forms of the fruit, flowers and flesh glow with warm luminosity. Taking centre stage, Morris’ dark eyes, berry-stained full lips and remote expression suggests an ancient, sensual exoticism. Her face, lowered and cast into strong shadow is simplified and mask-like; echoing Man Ray’s famous photograph Noire et Blanche (1926) of Kiki-de-Montparnasse. Static like the figure behind her, the sculpture mimics Morris’ pose in its rhythmic fashion. Skin and stone glow, as if lit by candlelight, the bright colouring emphasises the sensual and celebratory mood of the image. Furthermore, the robust curves of the sculpture, with its heavy, incisive outlines, has been designed to accentuate her fertility and the regenerative power of women. At the same time, Fergusson was producing a series of striking terracotta figurines and sandstone carvings of female nudes, inspired by Cambodian and Indian Hindu works seen on Fergusson’s visit to the Trocadéro Museum in Paris. The nude remained central to Fergusson’s output throughout his career.
Fergusson’s painting takes its title from the small pink enamel box in the foreground. Temptingly placed at the edge of the frame, the pink box, was a recurring object in Fergusson’s works of this period; in works, such as La Bete Violette and Fleurs et Fruits both of 1910. The sumptuous surface textures and curves of fruit, stone and flesh are painted with swaths of dark- berry and rosy-pink pastel brushstrokes echoing an overtly feminine softness and Rococo sensibility. In The Pink Box, Fergusson celebrates Morris by depicting her as a Goddess of Fertility, with fruit and flowers arranged around her in the form of a shrine and suggestive of devotion.
Margaret Morris (1891-1980) first met Fergusson in 1913 when she was performing with her fellow dancers at the Marigny theatre in Paris. Morris and Fergusson’s colourful long-term relationship was deeply intellectual as well as personal, she shared Fergusson’s interest in eastern art, adopting the poses of the statues in her own dance performances. She had learnt classical Greek dance movement with Raymond Duncan, the brother of Isadora Duncan, and developed her own highly individual style of choreography which was focused on simple movement and free modes of expression. Regarded as one of the great pioneers of modern dance, Morris also leaves behind an artistic legacy, having painted from an early age being the daughter of an artist. A mutual friend of Fergusson and Morris, Holbrook Jackson arranged their introduction and there followed a lasting love affair, which permeated the rest of their lives. ‘Her dynamic personality and sensuous physicality captivated Fergusson, inspiring much of his subsequent work’ (K. Simister, Living Paint; J.D. Fergusson 1874-1961, Edinburgh, 2001, p. 55). Thus, The Pink Box is a testament to the passionate and emotive relationship between the artist and his muse, which stimulated Fergusson to create his finest works.