LOT 006

BCSFA CGP CPE OC RCA
1919 - 2020
Canadian

Reeds V
acrylic on canvas
signed and on verso titled and dated 2001 on the gallery label
67 x 85 in, 170.2 x 215.9 cm

Estimate: $60,000 - $80,000 CAD

Sold for: $73,250

Preview at:

PROVENANCE
Equinox Gallery, Vancouver
Private Collection, Toronto

LITERATURE
Ian M. Thom, Gordon Smith: The Act of Painting, Vancouver Art Gallery, 1997, page 1


“My feelings and themes are largely derived from nature, the sea, rocks, trees; the things I live with. I feel a painting should be much more than an anecdote or a decoration. Painting should be a re-creation of an experience rather than an illustration of an experience.”

- Gordon Smith

Gordon Smith’s inspiration comes from the world around him on the west coast - in this case, the forest floor - a rich source of possibilities for his abstractions. The visual pleasure of losing oneself in a world of reflections is central here. The surface of the pooling water is an echo of the sky, but Smith does not show us its source, ensuring that we are somewhat disoriented. What matters is not a conventional landscape depiction of foreground, middle ground and distance, but the creation of a painterly field that pulls everything up to the surface - while still playing subtly with dimensionality. In Reeds V float dabs of paint in many hues, and lines of reeds and trunks of trees both solid and reflected, capturing Smith’s vision of his natural source as both material and immaterial.


Estimate: $60,000 - $80,000 CAD

All prices are in Canadian Dollars


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