David Brown Milne 1882 - 1953

Mira Godard Gallery, 1972

Private Collection, Ontario

This painting is in pristine condition and there are no apparent issues under UV. We wish to thank "In Restauro Conservart Inc." for examining this painting and their original notes are available upon request.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Immediately following upon the excitement of the Armory show of 1913, where he had received attention and been in the company of, and compared to, other great painters, Milne's work took on an intensity and poise that is boldly evident in The Yellow Rocker 1914.  Another masterful work from this year, Red, was reproduced in the New York Times in an article introducing the fall season at the N.E. Montross Gallery, where Milne then exhibited with The Eight, painters later to be known as the Ashcan School – Robert Henri, Maurice Prendergast, William Glackens, George Luks, and John Sloan among them.  The Yellow Rocker 1914, shares with Red, and with Black and The Pantry, Milne's display of confidence, strength, and visual dexterity.  As he moved from his earlier indebtedness to Monet and toward a closer affinity to Matisse (and to the contemporary zeitgeist), Milne had already found his own style and method.  His palette is reduced to five distinct colours, including white, in keeping with his idea, which he sometimes attributed to his Scottish genes, that doing the most with the least and exercising the utmost economy, could be the basis of his aesthetic, and it was throughout most of his career.  He handles the whole composition in this painting with both remarkable freedom in brushwork, and yet with a convincing control over each and every part of the painting.  This work is also, in one humorous respect, a self-portrait, for his friend Andrew McHench's plaster bust of Milne's head hangs on the wall behind his wife, Patsy.