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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen
• Sale Name:
  The Colin Davies Collection
• Sale Date:
  07 Jun 2017 ~ 6pm
• Lot #:
  12
• Lot Description:
  Justin Maurice O’Brien
  (1917-1996)
  Dormition of the Virgin, c.1988
  oil on canvas
  48 x 66 cm
  signed upper right: O’BRIEN
• Provenance:
  Australian Galleries, Melbourne; Private collection; Philip Bacon Galleries, Brisbane; Fine Australian Paintings, Sotheby’s, Melbourne, 30 April 1995, lot 58 (illustrated)
• Exhibited:
  Justin O’Brien, Australian Galleries, Melbourne, 8-29 August 1988, cat. no. 6; Justin O’Brien, Philip Bacon Galleries, Brisbane, July-August 1995, cat. no. 2
• References:
  Justin O’Brien, Australian Galleries, Melbourne, 1988, (unpaginated); Justin O’Brien, Philip Bacon Galleries, Brisbane, 1995, (unpaginated)
• Notes:
  Justin O’Brien’s reputation rests largely on his religious oeuvre. Equally, much of Australia’s religious art historiography depends on the art of Justin O’Brien. With the exception of the eremite Leonard French, it is difficult to identify any artist that concentrated their work on Christian imagery more than the methodical and devout O’Brien. The original source of O’Brien’s godly bent can be traced back to his parents – both dedicated Roman Catholics. However pious, his domestic conditions were equally liberal; interests in the arts were not only accepted, but often encouraged. It was in these private quarters, at age six, in the name of religious instruction, and perhaps art historical education, that O’Brien was first introduced to the art of the Renaissance. ‘I remember clearly the sepia slides of Donatello’s David, Ghiberti’s Doors and Michelangelo’s Pieta’, he once recalled fondly. ‘I remember how I used to look forward, so impatiently, while I was at school, for those special evenings to arrive.’1 Later, whilst O’Brien’s moral and dogmatic foundations were extended at the Christian Brother’s College in Sydney’s East, his artistic disposition was sharpened in the atelier of Edward Smith. A British portrait painter of little note, Smith was to be of some significance in the painterly guidance he provided his pupils. Smith’s Royal Academy grounding instilled in his young disciple an academic sense of refined style, ordered composition, chromatic balance, and above all, an acute skill in draughtsmanship. Following Smith’s traditional four-year ‘apprenticeship’, O’Brien continued his education at the more progressive and modern Peter Dodd Art School. In 1940, however, a sudden excited decision to join the army signalled a shocking but temporary end to his serene existence. Sent to serve in Palestine and Greece, he soon became a prisoner to the Germans, languishing in POW camps until the end of the war. In these conditions, he painted the odd portrait of fellow inmates, often using scavenged materials, making slow progress. It was not until his return to Sydney in 1944, that O’Brien began producing his first body of Christian-inspired compositions. Although it has been suggested that he was painting an ‘increasingly popular’ theme, the reality is that O’Brien was unconventional in his choice of subject matter.2 Post-World War II Australia, distinguished by rising secularisation, saw religious art becoming increasingly démodé. Abstract Expressionism and Minimalism, imported from the US, were dominating the local studios. With increasing self-referential and real-world substance making it onto canvas, very few found the space for divine manifestations. Despite these contradictory circumstances, in 1951, the Blake Prize for religious art was founded.3 With little serious competition, O’Brien’s The Virgin Enthroned (National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne) was the obvious winning entry.4 O’Brien produced several versions representing the death, dormition or lamentation of the Virgin. They are useful works in following the progress of the artist’s style over the five decades in which they were produced. The earliest recorded example on the theme is his 1947 triptych, Dormition of the Virgin (Private collection, Sydney). A few are in private hands, while other preparatory renditions are held in public collections including the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra; Horsham Regional Art Gallery and Geelong Gallery, Victoria. The earliest examples, including the first, 1947 version, demonstrate the artist’s fascination with the Italian trecento. Firstly, O’Brien subdivided the images, by introducing the frames architecturally, into triptychs. Then he would cover the skies in the background with gold leaf as was custom in the late Gothic art of Europe. Finally, these works were characterised by a schematic description of the figures, landscapes or interiors they occupy. In all this, they unashamedly recall the manner of early Sienese painting, particularly that of Duccio. The lure of Italy and its heritage was so great, that in 1967, O’Brien settled in Rome, living there till the end of his life. It would be in The Eternal City that he would find lasting nourishment. The present work, painted in Rome around 1988, shows O’Brien in control of his mature style. Firstly, the archaic triptych schema is now only alluded to in the form of a tri-arched interior. The rocky desert backdrops have been replaced with a simple Italianate room - the kitschy linoleum floors indicating the scene is probably unfolding in the artist’s Roman apartment. Compared to previous renderings of the subject, the present example exhibits a gentle treatment of the painted figures. Medieval severity and awkward foreshortening have given way to a softer touch and a more naturalistic perspective. In this period, O’Brien drew more from Piero and the quattrocento than ever before. This is most evident in the luminous atmosphere and the timeless quality of the scene. Even the artist’s earlier bright and vibrant colour palette has softened with age, in accordance with the reverence of the moment. Finally, perhaps more than in any earlier example, the Virgin, in her languid pose, is convincingly pointing to a gentle dormition rather than some mortal finality. The only notable hints of sadness or loss can be read in the expressive gestures of the surrounding figures, and in the full moon on the right – at once a symbol of virginity and of complete fulfilment of a cycle. The Dormition of the Virgin, c1988 is an important painting from the small and refined oeuvre of Justin O’Brien. With such religious work, the expatriate distinguished himself as a daring artist, one not shy to revisit, revive and re-invent the art of the early Renaissance. Yet in doing so, he managed to achieve striking originality. Petrit Abazi 1 Cited in Christine France, Justin O’Brien: image and icon, Craftsman House, Sydney, 1987, p. 9; 2 See Ibid., p. 12; 3 The move to set up a major prize for religious art can be read more as a push to ignite religious fervour in Australian art than as a response to a growing interest in the genre; 4 Other notable entrants included Donald Friend, Michael Kmit, Paul Haefliger and Arthur Boyd. See ‘Religious art: Blake Prize exhibition’, in The Sydney Morning Herald, 13 March 1951, p. 7
• Estimate:
  A$30,000 - 50,000
• 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.