CECIL COLLINS
(British, 1908-1989)
LAND’S END
Oil on Paper
4.75 x 6.5 Inches
Signed and Titled on Mat

Cecil Collins first studied at the Plymouth School of Art and later at the Royal College of Art. His earliest work was essentially naturalistic but during the 1930’s he was increasingly influenced by Klee and Picasso and, briefly, European surrealism. A meeting with Mark Tobey, the American abstract expressionist, in 1938 encouraged an interest in the art and philosophy of the Far East. In 1940, Collins began his series of images on the same theme as his book, The Vision of the Fool, published in 1947. Often labeled a neo-romantic, Collins has expressed his concern with ‘art as a metaphysical experience…with exploring the mystery of consciousness.’ Much of his imagery deals with visionary experience and the notion of a spiritual quest. Retrospectives of the artist’s work have been held at Whitechapel Art Gallery, London in 1959 and at the Tate Gallery in 1989. An Arts Council film about his work, The Eye of the Heart, was made in 1978.

Reference:

Dictionary of British Art: 20th Century Painters and Sculptors, Spalding, Vol. IV, p.124; Benezit, Dictionnaire des Peintres, Vol. III, p.791; Davenport’s Art Reference Guide, 2003/4 Edition, p.496; et al.