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Anthony Staynes escaped fame by sheer
diversity. People like to pin down an artist to a style they can easily recognise but
he was constantly exploring, moving from one genre to bring his boldness of touch to
another. Intended for a career in the Diplomatic Service, backed by various
scholarships and a First in Modern Languages at Cambridge, he turned his back on what
might have been a successful career to devote all his energies to painting.
He gave up all comfort to live on the
brink of poverty, he even gave up the girl he loved because he knew to his sorrow that
he could not both paint and support the family she wanted. So wrapped up in his work
he became that he could not spare the time to publicise his paintings and even avoided
parting with them unless under pressure from friends wanting to buy.
In the end ill-health forced him into
the life of a recluse, still working till the last in the great studio in Chiswick
inherited from his artist father.
At last the time has arrived to
appreciate his remarkable achievement and the astonishing brilliance of his colour.
This appreciation is shown by the fact
that twelve of his paintings are coming up for sale at Christies on February 7th.
This brilliance of colour is especially
shown in the abstracts:-
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1. Spring Woodland |
2. Abstract Composition |
3. Abstract Composition |
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Oil on Canvas 48"x48" |
Oil on Canvas 72"x48" |
Oil on Canvas 48"x48" |
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larger view |
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Some abstracts seem to have lines
restraining the bold colours that attempt to break through. Others are as luminous as
stained glass windows...
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larger view |
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...Others are as luminous as stained
glass windows.
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larger view |
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The Nightscapes elaborate what he
describes as "the poetry of the night and the beauty of the urban scene."
Light shines through the dark like a symbol of hope and the effect is that of a
stained glass window in its jewel-like quality.
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4. Nightscape I |
5. Nightscape II |
6. Nightscape III |
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Oil on Board 72"x48" |
Oil on Board 48"x36" |
Oil on Board 29"x21" |
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larger view |
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Among earlier works are pastels, mostly
abstract rendering of Greek dawns and sunsets, executed with extraordinary intensity
of colour and directness of impact.
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7. Greek Dawn |
8. Greek Sunset I |
9. Greek Sunset II |
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Pastel c6"x8" |
Pastel c6"x8" |
Pastel c6"x8" |
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larger view |
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Portraits are of various kinds,
including early studies showing the influence of Picasso, Sixties' girls and some
interesting copies of portraits of famous men whom he admired, such as Cromwell,
Newton and Berlioz where the foreground/background, rendered in psychedelic stripes or
spots, is as important as the face.
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10. Girl with two books |
11. Girl Daydreaming |
12. Hector Berlioz |
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Oil on Board 44"x34" |
Oil on Board 60"x36" |
Oil on Board 48"x48" |
| Click on each picture for a
larger view |
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There are portraits of girls where the
patterns are are as much part of the portrait as the face....
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larger view |
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...While others in hats are more
conventionally glamorous.
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larger view |
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Some portraits of famous people are
easily recognisable, like the one of Auden but others I cannot place such as the man
wearing a jabot and one may be a self-portrait.
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larger view |
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The Mirror designs give scope for
fantasy, the frames invite amusement or contribute mystery. He sold some of these at
Harrods but, impatient with the demand for reproduction, refused to do others for sale
rather than for his own pleasure.
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13. Mirror I |
14. Mirror II |
15. Mirror III |
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Oil on Board |
Oil on Board |
Oil on Board |
| Click on each picture for a
larger view |
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There are further fanciful borders to
mirrors which show the range of his imagination and one where he has chosen to put a
portrait instead of a mirror.
| Click on each picture for a
larger view |
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More examples of the artist's work will
be shown on this website from time to time, together with a detailed biography. Some
pictures are large and unframed but most are for sale. Some are in private collections
and are unavailable and a number are displayed at the RSPCA's new headquarters at
Horsham in Sussex.
You are invited to comment on the
Artist's work or to make enquires regarding the sale of his work using the email
address below.
Contact Details:
N J G Staynes
email: staynes.storey@btopenworld.com
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