Edward Burra

Sale, Sotheby's London, Works from the Estate of Edward Burra, Lady Ritchie of Dundee and Associated Owners, 3rd July 2002, lot 289, where acquired by the present owner

London, Alex. Reid & Lefevre Ltd, Edward Burra: Paintings from America, March - May 1980, cat. no.2, illustrated;
Chichester, Pallant House Gallery, Edward Burra, 22nd October 2011 - 19th February 2012, un-numbered exhibition; with tour to Djanogly Art Gallery, Lakeside Arts Centre, University of Nottingham.

Andrew Causey, Edward Burra Complete Catalogue, Phaidon, Oxford, 1985, cat. no.222, illustrated.

The sheet is adhered in several areas to the backboard but is not fully laid down. There are artist's pinholes at all four corners. The sheet has been unevenly cut along the lower edge, with some resultant areas of unevenness, not visible in the present mount. There are also some tiny areas of loss in the extreme bottom right corner, again not visible in the present mount. There are two soft creases in the lower left corner, again not wholly visible in the present mount. There is an area of unevenness to the painted surface at the lower left edge, to the brown of the figure's shoulder which appears in keeping with the artist's technique. There is also a soft vertical crease to the right side of the green figure of the bottom left. There are a couple of minor possible scuff marks in the lower left quadrant, only visible upon very close inspection. There is some light staining to the sheet in the upper left corner. There is a very slight old tear to sheet at the centre of the right edge. There is some studio detritus and matter apparent, and also some some very tiny accretions, visible upon extremely close inspection. Subject to the above the work is in overall very good condition, with strong vivid colours throughout. The work is window mounted and held behind glass in a simple wooden frame. Please telephone the department on +44 (0) 207 293 6424 if you would like to discuss the present work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Having born first hand witness to the atrocities of the Spanish Civil War and observed European society decay irreparably under the strain of fighting the Second World War, Burra’s Art could not but alter to reflect his new reality. When asked why he no longer made his playful satires his response was simply to ask what a satirist might do with Auschwitz?

Excavation, as a landscape, is unusual for Burra’s output of the time. Primarily a figure painter until the last years of his life, this work is striking in its sparse architectural composition. Referencing Eighteenth-century Capriccios by artists such as Giovanni Paolo Panini, its form is rooted deep in Artistic tradition. Comprising a landscape of ruins, populated by a cast of unknown vagrants and passers-by, part fantasy, part reality, the transition from ancient Rome to war ravaged London is made through an inherited vocabulary. 

Burra, an increasingly sickly man, unable to travel or serve observed the Second World War from his family’s home in Rye, on the South Coast. A frustrating standpoint in many respects, it did however offer a front row seat for the Battle of Britain and all subsequent bombing offensives launched against London from France. In constant communication with his close friend Billy Chappell, Burra documented his war experience through his letters. Writing on October 15^th 1940 he put down his experience of getting caught up in a raid. ‘The lorry drivers fled like autumn leaves (falling early this year) & were all in hedges and ditches letting out a stream of fuck sod etc. it’s a sort of British Ave Maria, each sod a pearl, each fuck a prayer to twist a bugger by absence wrung.’ Burra was a great observer. His unique gift of seeing as others could not, in environments where others cannot progress beyond the rawest emotion, made clear in his letters, is too embodied by Excavation.

A picture defined by menace and foreboding, Excavation embodies a widespread post-war mood. More subtle in theme than much of his contemporary work it radiates exhaustion, people, structures, even the sky appear drained, without vigour. The buildings clearly reference the bombed out terraces of London’s East end, the chimneys in this context left open to the possibility a more sinister interpretation. The title leads us to presume that this is a scene of redevelopment and the wooden boarding of the like used around construction sites would seem to reaffirm this, but actual labour is conspicuous by its absence. The buildings unattended, the background figures passive, the divide between within and without the site becomes increasingly apparent. The foreground figures are bolder, in both colour and form; they appear more active, assured in their movement and stance. Indeed the exterior area enjoys a far more diverse use of colour; pungent reds, yellows and blues contrast abruptly with the muted greys and browns of the rear ground.

The beaked figure, a motif used repeatedly by Burra in his wartime pictures to depict soldiers, is intriguing. Cloaked and hooded he appears no longer as a combatant but retains a strength that the other figures lack. The shadowy figures of the rear ground stand awkwardly, too large for their surroundings, too weak to make any real impression on the scene. Once more it is impossible to ignore the obvious division.

Excavation represents an important transition in Burra’s artistic output; no longer a painter of bold, playful figure scenes, not yet a landscape artist seeking to capture and defend the spirit of the English countryside. Barra’s wartime pictures are among his most significant and Excavation is a uniquely captivating example.