Lot 45: * AR Algernon Cecil Newton R.A. (British, 1880-1968) Winter Shadows 61 x 101.6 cm. (24 x 40 in.)

Algernon Cecil Newton R.A.
(British, 1880-1968)
Winter Shadows oil on canvas61 x 101.6 cm. (24 x 40 in.)Painted in January 1940
Provenance: The Artist, from whom purchased byLt Colonel C.W. Richards (the artist's brother-in-law)Thence by family descentPrivate Collection, AustraliaExhibitedLondon, The Royal Academy, Summer Exhibition 1940, cat.no.583"It was during that visit that I witnessed Algernon composing a painting. On a bitter afternoon walk when the sky was metal grey and a line of elms already cast long shadows on the snow, the three of them - my mother, uncle and Algy - were walking ahead of us chatting in a tight little group. Algernon stopped to fill and light his pipe. My mother walked on, a solitary figure, and I stayed politely with my uncle and host. He drew deeply and puffed and gazed at the trees and the shadows, tamped down the tobacco and then looked and looked again, breathing deeply. I wondered if the soles of my shoes might freeze to the ground. Many years later, I was startled and entranced to see that beautiful, still, petrified view we had looked at together, hanging in my parent's sitting room, and I thought what a wonderful memory he had. He had caught the bleak afternoon hour exactly." (June Wilmott Richards, niece of Algernon's second wife, Janetta)We are grateful to Nicholas Newton for compiling this catalogue entry.