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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen
• Sale Name:
  Fine Australian & International Art
• Sale Date:
  29 Aug 2016 ~ 6.30pm - Part 1 (Lots 1 - 78)
  30 Aug 2016 ~ 2.30pm - Part 2 (Lots 79 - 328)
• Lot #:
  42
• Lot Description:
  Colin Colahan
  (1897-1937)
  The Purple Drape (Biddy Mahoney) 1930
  oil on canvas
  76.5 x 61 cm
• Provenance:
  Estate of the Artist; Private collection, Melbourne
• Exhibited:
  Portraiture, Meldrum Gallery, March 21 - March 30, 1934; Figures and Landscapes, Athenaeum Gallery, 28 August - 8 September, 1934
• References:
  Arthur Streeton review, Argus 29 March, 1934, p.5
• Notes:
  Colin Colahan, is regarded as one of Australia's leading tonal artists, a genre which has been elevated, by critics and by the art market, as one of Australia's most important artistic movements of the 20th Century. As a student of Max Meldrum, his peers included Clarice Beckett, Percy Leason, Polly Hurry and Justus Jorgensen. During the inter-war years, he earned a reputation as a leading portraitist and en plein air painter, and continued his practice after migrating to Europe in 1935. Colahan also received a commission from the Australian Imperial Force as an Offical War Artist during the Second World War. A favoured sitter of Colahan was Biddy Mahoney, a member of Victoria's social elite. She is the sitter in, The Purple Drape, a seductive and striking work that exemplifies Colahan's command of colour and composition. Painted by Colahan in 1930, the Purple Drape, was exhibited twice in 1934; first at a group portraiture show in May at Meldrum's Gallery (Queen Street, Melbourne), and a second time at a solo exhibition of Colahan's work in August at the Athenaeum Gallery (Collins Street, Melbourne) and remained a favourite of Colahan's, retained by the artist throughout his life, only recently being released by his estate. In his review of the Meldrum Gallery exhibition, Arthur Streeton mentioned The Purple Drape specifically, including the following description in his review: 'The Purple Drape, a strong study... The colour of the work, warm in light and shadow, is strong and vital in expression and in its grasp of the essential.'1 1 Arthur Streeton, The Argus, March 29, 1934, p.5
• Estimate:
  A$8,000 - 12,000
• Realised Price:
  *****
  

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• Category:
  Art

This Sale has been held and this item is no longer available. Details are provided for information purposes only.