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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen
• Sale Name:
  The Australian Art Collection of Sandra Powell & Andrew King
• Sale Date:
  19 Mar 2014 ~ 6.30pm
• Lot #:
  16
• Lot Description:
  Joy St. Clair Hester
  (1920-1960)
  Child in Blue
  ink and watercolour on paper
  25 x 35cm
  Joy Hester estate stamp upper left
• Provenance:
  The collection of the artist Mr. Peregrine Smith, son of the artist; Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne (label to verso); Ms. Anne Hall, Melbourne; Leonard Joel, Australian, British, New Zealand & European Historical and Contemporary Paintings, Melbourne, 26 September 1989, lot 168; Art Galleries Schubert, QLD (label to verso)
• Exhibited:
  Joy Hester, Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne, 6-25 October 1976, cat. 71; Joy Hester, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne 29 September - 6 December 1981, cat. 59; Leave no space for Yearning: Joy Hester, Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne, 25 August - 11 November 2001
• References:
  Maureen Gilchrist, 'Tender Portraits of Lover's Friends', The Age, 13 October 1976, p. 2; Janine Burke, Joy Hester, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, 1981, p. 46 (illustrated); Janine Burke, Joy Hester, Greenhouse Publications, Melbourne, 1983, p.160 (illustrated); front cover jacket (illustrated); Kelly Gellatly, Leave no space for Yearning: Joy Hester, Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne, 2001, p.51
• Notes:
  One of the founding members of the Contemporary Art Society in 1938 and the only female artist in the Angry Penguin group, Joy Hester holds a special place in Australian art history. In spite of financial difficulties, a forced nomadic life, a tumultuous family break-up and a diagnosed fatal illness, Joy Hester's art practice was formidably tireless. She would continue to produce some of the most memorable and original images during and after the war. In December 1953, Avonsleigh, Hester's residence since 1952, was the scene of the strongest bushfires since Black Friday 19391. Bushfire, Avonsleigh (1952-5, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra) is thought to be the only instance in which Hester depicts her experiences of these traumatic events. However, the current work, possibly painted in the aftermath of the fires, shows a young girl emerging from a charred abstract space on one side and surrounded by plumes of smoke and burning embers on the other. The calm and peaceful pose of the subject, even in the face of uncontrollable adversities, can be seen as reflecting the artist's attitude towards the challenges that confronted her throughout her life. Although the current work was originally thought to have been painted around 1947, Sweeney Reed had suggested that the work was a portrait of Fern, Joy's youngest daughter, who was born in 1954. In addition, Janine Burke has also rejected the earlier date, on the basis of the stylistic features, especially in the treatment of the eyes which is more in line with the artist's last series of paintings2. In discussing these later works on occasion of the 2001 National Gallery of Australia exhibition, Joy Hester and Friends, Deborah Hart noted how Hester's achievement in the 'late forties through the fifties reveals a growing technical assurance in drawing and leaps of faith into new worlds involving aspects of love'3. Hester's art was also increasingly focused on the love between a mother and child, and Child in Blue is certainly more than just a generic portrait of a child. The work depicts Hester's infant Fern with private, motherly intimacy, yet avoids tempting romantic sentimentality. This striking portrait, published on the cover of Janine Burke's seminal monograph on Joy Hester, and exhibited in two significant retrospectives, is a beautiful and charming example of work from the artist's final years. 1 'City in Drought Peril as Heat Soars', The Argus, 21 December 1953, p. 1 2 Janine Burke, Joy Hester, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, 1981, p. 46 3 Deborah Hart, 'Other Worlds: 1947-1960', Joy Hester and Friends, National Gallery of Australia, 2001, p. 55
• Estimate:
  A$25,000 - 35,000
• 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.