Graham Sutherland, O.M.

A gift from the artist to the Director of the 1951 Festival of Britain
Sale, Sotheby's, London, 18th June 1997, lot 124, whence purchased by the present owner

Roger Berthoud, Graham Sutherland, A Biography, Faber and Faber, London, 1982, pp.145-7.

There are areas of surface craquelure scattered throughout the composition notably to the mustard pigments by the left edge. There is also a small area where the paint is slightly lifting in the upper left corner and to the dark yellow area in the centre of the composition. There are some small spots of old paint loss by the left and bottom edges and in the upper right quadrant and some scattered areas of surface dirt. Held in a painted wood and gilt frame under glass; unexamined out of frame. If you have any further queries, please call the 20th Century British Art department on +44 (0) 207 293 6424.
"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."

Painted 1950-1, this work is one of the studies for The Origins of the Land, now in the collection of the Tate Gallery, London. Originally called The Forces of Nature, the enormous mural of pre-historic Britain and its geological formation was commissioned in April 1950 for the Land of Britain pavilion at the Festival of Britain. Studies for the mural were shown at the Redfern Gallery in November 1952. The Manchester Guardian's critic revelled in how 'in a haze of yellow, pink, green, orange and red the organic and inorganic energies rise together and marry and put forth their strange progeny' (op.cit., p.146).