Peter Doig, b. 1959

Royal College of Art, London
Acquired from the above by the present owner in 2000

The depiction of the bearded man in the canoe has become a seminal image in the work of Peter Doig.  This example, which dates from 2000, relates most closely to one of Doig's first large scale paintings of the same year and subject, entitled 100 Years Ago. The painting combines the depiction of a timeless, romantic wilderness with elements of magical realism.  The figure stares out from his orange canoe, vascillating between a figure of pre-history and a contemporary icon of modernity.