Sold for: $46,250

PROVENANCE
Collection of DuPont Canada, Ontario

LITERATURE
Adele Freedman, Gershon Iskowitz: Painter of Light, 1982, page 148, a similar 1981 oil on canvas entitled Night Greens D reproduced on the cover and page 154, and a similar oil on canvas entitled Night Violet A reproduced page 155

In the abstract work of Gershon Iskowitz, landscape is present, but only by allusion. In 1967, the sight of the open prairie during a helicopter ride from Winnipeg to Churchill, Manitoba, gave Iskowitz an experience of space and colour that inspired his work from then on. His paintings became curtains of dappled paint, pulsating with vibrant colour. In 1981, Iskowitz reflected on a new direction in his work, one that would contain “a feeling of the night, a feeling of mystery, with lots of depth, unity, and composition.” From this intent arose his Night series paintings, in which distinctive serpentine forms twisted in vertical movement over shifting, richly coloured, mottled grounds. Adele Freedman stated that in these works, “Iskowitz left the age of light behind and entered the era of electricity.” In this series, “Night” has a double meaning, since Iskowitz was a nocturnal painter – he would start to work in his studio around midnight. Night Blues-B, with its rich blue ground and contrasting serpentine forms energized by red, yellow and peridot, emerged from Iskowitz’s intense nocturnal creativity, its radiance and beauty lighting up the dark.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars