Basil Blackshaw, H.R.H.A

Acquired directly from the artist and thence by descent to the present owner

Belfast, Arts Council Gallery, Basil Blackshaw Retrospective, 1974.

This condition report was carried out by HAMISH DEWAR Hamish Dewar Fine Art Conservation 14 Mason's Yard, Duke Street, London, SW1Y 6BU Tel: +44 (0) 207 930 4004. Unconditional and without prejudice Structural Condition The artist's canvas is providing a sound and secure structural support. I did not remove the backing board so did not inspect the reverse of the canvas as I did want to interfere with the originality of what I assume is the original framing arrangement. Paint surface The paint surface has a discoloured and slightly uneven varnish layer and cleaning would undoubtedly be very beneficial. There are 2 small areas that fluoresce under ultra-violet light. These may be later retouchings but there is a suggestion that these maybe by the artist. These are: 1) an area to the left of the horses right foreleg in the pale background. This measures approximately 1.5 x 1 cms, and 2) very thin vertical lines in the upper left of the pale background. Summary The painting would therefore appear to be in very good and stable condition with the potential for considerable improvement should the painting be cleaned and revarnished.
"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."

The enigmatic and elegant figure of the horse has been one of the artist's most passionately painted subjects throughout his career.  The son of a professional horse trainer, Blackshaw experienced the complex nature of the animal from a very early age.  Although born at Glengormley House, Co. Antrim, Blackshaw lived at Boardmills, south of Belfast, for most of his formative years and his father always had at least one or two horses in the yard either for breaking in or on hunt livery. Indeed, the artist's first known painting was a hunting scene that he painted on a toy tray for his sister's doll house.

In 1947 at the exceptionally early age of 15, Blackshaw enrolled at the Belfast College of Art and as John Hewitt, then Keeper of Art at the Belfast Museum and Art Gallery and the author of the first serious essay on the artist, has surmised, his 'ideal painter [at the time] was Alfred Munnings, and it seemed quite natural that he should meet his college fees with his earnings from horse-portraiture' (J.Hewitt, 'Portrait of a Young Man as the Artist' 1957, quoted in B.Ferran, ed., Basil Blackshaw - Painter, Belfast 1995, p.22). The twisted and contorted energy of Rearing Horse clearly demonstrates the artist's intricate knowledge of the horse's anatomy. Blackshaw was himself a keen rider and as a young man, he often joined the Co. Down staghounds for a day's hunting and had a strong understanding of the intimate relationship between horse and rider.

The probing dark outline that defines the horse's muscular structure in the present work is strongly reminiscent of Alberto Giacometti's similarly investigative handling of both human and animal form. Blackshaw would most probably have experienced that artist's work on his first visit to Paris in 1951 as part of an Arts Council travelling scholarship which also enabled him to see for the first time works by artists such as Cézanne, Oscar Kokoschka, Edward Munch and Marc Chagall. The present work was most likely executed in that same decade when all of these artists were key sources of inspiration for the development of his own visual vocabulary that is so clearly manifested in the present work.

Since his first public exhibition at the age of 20, Blackshaw has exhibited extensively internationally and the first of many major retrospectives of his work was held in 1974, the last time that the present work and his Self Portrait (lot  1) were seen in public.