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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen-Webb's
• Sale Name:
  Important Paintings & Contemporary Art
• Sale Date:
  29 Nov 2016 ~ 6.30pm (NZ time)
• Lot #:
  30
• Lot Description:
  Pat Hanly
  Fire on Earth
  oil on board, 1960
  1175mm x 885mm
  signed P. Hanly and dated 60 in brushpoint lower right; title inscribed FIRE ON EARTH and signed P. HANLY in marker pen verso; inscribed FIRE ON EARTH HANLY THE GALLERY 64 SYMONDS STREET AUCKLAND in marker pen in another hand verso, title inscribed FIRE ON EARTH and dated 1960 on original Gallery One London gallery label affixed verso
• Provenance:
  Purchased by the present owner from Barry Lett Galleries, Auckland in 1968.
• References:
  Illustrated: O 'Brien, Gregory. Hanly. Ron Sang Publications, Auckland, 2012. pp 36-37.
• Notes:
  An important early painting by Pat Hanly, Fire on Earth belongs to the Fire series of 1960, which is considered to be Hanly's first major series of oil paintings. Significantly, these paintings, including Fire on Earth , introduced many of the formal and chromatic elements, and the themes, that have become characteristic of Hanly's artistic practice. Painted in the midst of the Cold War while Hanly was living in London, Fire on Earth clearly speaks to the artist's preoccupation with the precarious state of international relations and his attempt to deal with the horrifying possibility, for the very first time in history, that whole countries could be obliterated with the remote deployment of a single warhead. Not surprisingly, the climate of the Cold War was one of pervasive anxiety and panic, as the fear of imminent nuclear destruction blanketed much of the world. In Fire on Earth , this potential reality is conceived as a fiery, apocalyptic dreamscape. The orange-red orb of the sun hangs in the sky like a large fireball, dominating much of the painting as it casts both landscape and sky in a burning, tempestuous rage. Atomic warfare is perhaps most literally signposted in the bottom left-hand corner, where two amorphous forms are highly evocative of the distinctive mushroom cloud seen after nuclear detonation. In the centre of the painting, the pressure of these nuclear explosions seems to have knocked a small, two-windowed house sideways. It leans beneath the weight of a streaking comet or, perhaps, the roof is on fire but, either way, it remains pointedly intact and upright. Indeed, Fire on Earth is not wholly concerned with the destruction of man and the end of the world for several key elements in the painting speak of hope, life and regeneration. The scorching sun is an evocation of nuclear calamity but, as Gregory O'Brien succinctly notes, it ;represents poetic inspiration while the single verdant tree simultaneously represents "the tree of life". By employing such powerful universal symbols, Hanly imbued the painting with a central element of solace, reassuring the viewer that, despite living in such uncertainty, there was still cause for courage, optimism and a baseline faith in humanity. In this, Fire on Earth is indicative of Hanly's approach to painting more generally for he repeatedly chose to harness his artistic talents to highlight social, political and/or environmental injustices. Rather than being bleak and fatalistic, however, Hanly was possessed of the unique ability to be able to craft a painterly dialogue that was highly conscionable, yet also thought-provoking and reaffirming. Irrespective of subject, Hanly's preferred palette remained bright, saturated and vibrant while his application of paint was typically loose and lyrical, leaving a surface that was textured and inviting. The result, as seen in Fire on Earth, is paintings that are at once aesthetically engaging and culturally reflexive. Jemma Field
• Estimate:
  NZ$50,000 - 70,000
• 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.