Catalogue entry
John Wellsborn 1907
T02229 Microcosm 1957-9
Oil on hardboard 253 x 406 (10 x 16) on hardboard support 305 x 457 (12 x 18)
Inscribed on back in black crayon on area of white paint, 'John Wells 1957-9 MICROCOSM 10 | ANCHOR STUDIO | TREWARVENETH STREET | NEWLYN | CORNWALL', and in pencil, '18 x 12'
Bequeathed by Miss E.M. Hodgkins 1977
Typically of John Wells, a wide range of different techniques has been employed in the painting of Microcosm. As in Painting, 1957, the artist has applied a series of superimposed oil glazes on to a white ground. These have been abraded and scratched with a blade and sandpaper so that under-lying layers of paint are revealed and the surface becomes a complex pattern of swirling incisions. As a result the picture has a range of matt and glossy surface effects and a sense of depth and luminosity. Wells again used a geometric grid to generate an abstract pattern into which he inserted areas of strong colour… (read more)
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