Lot 151
  • 151

Samuel John Peploe, R.S.A. 1871-1935

Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 GBP
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Description

  • Samuel John Peploe, R.S.A.
  • iona, the north shore
  • signed l.l.: peploe
  • oil on panel

Provenance

Margaret Peploe, the artist's wife until 1941, and thence by descent 

Condition

STRUCTURE This picture is in excellent original condition with clear colours throughout. The panel is sound and has not warped and the paint surface appears to be stable throughout. There is a glue mark at the bottom left corner, probably where a label has previously been affixed - this should be easily removed. The picture is clean and ready to hang. UNDER ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT There are no signs of retouching. FRAME This picture is contained in a moulded plaster frame and under glass.
"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."

Catalogue Note

'Like Cadell he [Peploe] found the island offered him a release from the tensions of life in Edinburgh; it also provided an opportunity to relax with his growing family while, at the same time, offering a totally different inspiration. Peploe treated Iona as systematically as he did his studio still-lifes. While Cadell found subjects wherever he looked on the island, Peploe was much more methodical and limited in his outlook. Most of his Iona paintings are of the island's many bays, particularly at the north end, with the pale sands and intense blues and greens of the sea usually seen under skies flecked with cloud.' (Roger Billcliffe, The Scottish Colourists - Cadell, Fergusson, Hunter, Peploe, 1989, p. 52)

In August 1920 Samuel John Peploe made his first visit to the tiny but beautiful island of Iona, off the west coast of Mull, invited by his friend Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell who had adored the rugged coastal scenery and remoteness of the island since before WWI. Peploe immediately became equally engaged by his surroundings and began to adopt Cadell's linear and abstract approach to landscape painting. The pictures he painted on Iona were immediately popular with collectors and 'did much to secure the artist's commercial success, at least paying the school fees. But the island was of far more significance for Peploe. It was a sanctuary. He felt in tune with this place.' (Guy Peploe, S. J. Peploe 1871-1935, 2000, p. 65) The spirituality engendered in Peploe whilst he was staying on Iona is evident in the Ode to the Elementals which Peploe composed to recite one midsummer night to a group of friends and members of his family; 'O Earth, our Mother, we, thy children, have come tonight to pay thee homage and to give thanks for all thy benefactions, to praise thee for thy manifold gifts.' (ibid Peploe, p. 65) The Ode continues to celebrate the wonders of nature and there is one line which seems particularly appropriate to the coastal views he painted at Iona; '...spirit of place, spirit of this particular place, lonely and barren, harsh and bitter is thy dwelling: encompassed by moor and rock and sea.' (ibid Peploe, p. 65)

The present picture was painted in 1932 and is one of Peploe's last landscapes painted on Iona and is comparable with Iona of 1930 (Kirkcaldy Museum and Art Gallery).