Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell

J. Davidson Esq.;
Sale: Christie's, Glasgow, 20 November 1997, Lot 1;
Private Collection

London, The British Empire Exhibition, April to October, 1924

The canvas is original. There is some very light craquelure in places. Otherwise in good original condition, clean and ready to hang. Ultraviolet light reveals no sign of retouching. Held in a simple wooden frame in fair condition.
"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."

Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell first visited Iona in 1913 on a sailing trip with a friend and was immediately captivated by its remote and enchanting beauty. Cadell served in the army during much of WW1 enduring the horrors of the French trenches but during periods of leave he was able to return to Iona on brief painting forays which would have provided a welcome sanctuary for him. During the war years the seclusion and peace of Iona had increased importance as a place of refuge and it was here that he painted some of his most striking landscapes of the white beaches and sculptural rocks. Iona also offered Cadell a different lifestyle to that of Edinburgh and as Roger Billcliffe illustrates "its simplicity of life – primitive almost – was obviously a welcome change from the style and pace of life of Edinburgh."

Following his discharge from the army in 1919 Cadell headed straight to Iona and the visit was not merely to raise his flagging spirits, it was also a commercial venture. The war had affected the sales of his still lifes and studio interiors as patrons ceased to buy the paintings; of the seven still lifes exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy in 1919, not one was sold. Conversely Cadell's Iona views retained their popularity among his most loyal patrons and he decided to travel to Iona to paint landscapes to meet the increasing demand. He sold fourteen of these Iona seascapes in the weeks before Christmas in 1919 and secured enough money to be able to purchase his new studio in Edinburgh at 6 Ainslie Place. Cadell became a well-known and welcome annual visitor to Iona and the local children would run to the dock to greet him, shouting the nickname they gave him 'Himself'.

Both Cadell and Samuel John Peploe spent many summer months in Iona, often together, and the paintings they produced perfectly express the spirit of the Colourist philosophy of painting, rendering the forms of the rocks and shadows in a dramatic language of colour and form. In the present work the colour of the water is vibrant aquamarine, the light is fresh and life-giving, the rocks are sharp and aggressively guide the viewer's eye to the horizon. These Iona views offer the viewer a unique sense of escapism, onto the expanses of white sands and the swathes of azure and malachite seas where no human presence disturbs one's contemplation of natural beauty. He drew solace and inspiration from the tranquillity of the island and its people but as Billcliffe further indicates, "its great attraction was its light and the rapidly changing colours of sand, sea and sky caused by the wind blowing in the clouds from the Atlantic. The fields, hills, farms and beaches of Iona never failed to offer Cadell some new subject." The North End of Iona is a Colourist tour de force and certainly one of the finest Iona landscapes to have been offered at auction.