RICHARD SMITH | Big Black

Gifted by the Artist to Robyn Denny and thence by descent to the present owner

Compiled by Matthew Goldsmith on 1st May 2018: The painting was collected by myself and Mark Paget from the studio of Robyn Denny and arrived in the studio on a small roll. Robyn had asked our advice regarding restoration. I understand from Robyn that he and Richard were good friends and had swapped painting at an earlier date. It was unrolled and left to relax for several days. There were obvious undulations and creases. It was decided to pre-stretch the canvas to improve the surface; the tacking edges were delicate so we added a strip line using super-fine linen and using liquid Beva 371 as an adhesive. The surface tension was gradually increased over several days and the painting put onto a lightweight stretcher. We wanted to avoid a full lining. The surface had an obvious 'bloom' which was cleaned along with the rest of the picture and an anti-fungicide applied. Areas of flaking were treated locally with Plextol D498. A thin retouching varnish was added (Ketone 'N') and areas of missing paint were retouched using pure pigments in a synthetic medium. The painting received a spray final varnish also Ketone 'N' prior to collection. The work is unframed. The work has not been inspected under ultraviolet light. Please telephone the department on +44 (0) 207 293 6424 if you have any further questions regarding the present lot.
"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."

Robyn Denny and Richard Smith were part of a ‘golden generation’ of young artists who graduated from the Royal College of Art in the late 1950s and early '60s, who ike their counterparts from Goldsmith's 30 years later, these Young British Artists left art school to almost instant success, at both home and abroad. Unlike previous generations of British art students who had looked longingly toward Paris, they looked to American art and culture for inspiration – from the sheer power and ambition of Abstract Expressionism to Pop’s engagement with a new, consumer world. In 1959, Denny and Smith, along with their friend and contemporary Ralph Rumney, created Place, an exhibition in which their paintings were bolted together to form a structure through which the viewer was invited to walk, to experience their paintings physically, as an environment. The Evening Standard art critic couldn’t restrain his indignation: London had certainly never seen anything like it. The following group of works, all taken from Denny’s private collection, speak not only to the high points of Denny’s career – specifically his show at the Venice Biennale in 1966 and his 1973 Tate retrospective – but also to an enduring friendship, over 50 years, between two young artists who found themselves at the epicentre of an explosion in British art and culture.