It’s Elemental: Line and Colour in Contemporary Art

October 2429, 2020
Auction begins to close at 2:00 pm ET

Online Auction
LOT 15

Lot 15

JOHN RICHARD FOX, R.C.A. (1927-2008)

JOHN RICHARD FOX, R.C.A. (1927-2008)
Lot 15 Details
JOHN RICHARD FOX, R.C.A. (1927-2008), Canadian

UNTITLED NO. 78, 1978

acrylic on canvas
signed and dated /78 on the reverse
62 ins x 87 ins; 157.5 cms x 221 cms

Estimate $3,000-$5,000

Realised: $2,400
Price Includes Buyer's Premium ?

Lot Report

Additional Images
JOHN RICHARD FOX, R.C.A. (1927-2008)
  • JOHN RICHARD FOX, R.C.A. (1927-2008)
Provenance:

Estate of the Artist
Big Brother Big Sisters of Cornwall, Ontario

Literature:

http://www.johnrichardfox.com/en/selected-work

Note:

Proceeds to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cornwall, Ontario.

One of two lots by John Fox in this auction, this work comes from the artist’s middle period, a time in which he rejected representation—a genre in which he had been working for over 15 years—and leapt wholeheartedly into abstraction. From the early 1970s to 1985, abstraction allowed Fox to consider the physical and tactile qualities of painting without having to concern himself with the pursuit of subject matter. Influenced by Abstract Expressionists like Willem De Kooning and Mark Rothko, as well as Canadian abstractionists like Otto Rogers and Jean McEwen and second-generation Painter Eleven artists, Fox was “interested in the emotive brushstrokes and overtly expressive colour of international non-representational art.”

Fox was above all a master colourist, focused on the sensuous use of light, hue and tone. Time spent in Venice in the mid-1970s also influence his abstract compositions, and indeed it is hard not to see the rich Mediterranean light and faded frescoes reflected back at the viewer in these compositions.

CONDITION DETAILS

For condition information please contact the specialist.

LOT 15
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About Condition Ratings

  • 5 Stars: Excellent - No discernable damage, flaws or imperfections
  • 4 Stars: Very Good - Minor flaws or imperfections visible only under close inspection using specialised instruments or black light
  • 3 Stars: Good - Minor flaws visible upon inspection under standard lighting
  • 2 Stars: Fair - Exhibits flaws or damage that may draw the eye under standard lighting
  • 1 Star: Poor - Flaws or damage immediately apparent under standard lighting (examples: missing components, rips, broken glass, damaged surfaces, etc.)

Note: Condition ratings and condition details are the subjective opinions of our specialists and should be used as a guide only. Waddington’s uses due care when preparing condition details, however, our staff are not professional restorers or conservators. Condition details and reports are not warranties and each lot is sold “as is” in accordance with the buyer’s terms and conditions of sale. In all cases the prospective purchaser is responsible for inspecting the property themselves prior to placing a bid.