Notes

In the 1960s Cecil Skotnes’s work developed from the two-dimensional woodcut prints to working with the wood block itself to create a three-dimensional sculptural object. With this, he explored colour in his work in a different way, using a range of earthy warm reds, whites, and ochres. The present lot is a great example of his craftsmanship and use of material, the large-scale wood panel, with incisions creating movement throughout the work. He sets the lighter ochres against the darker rich dramatic shades of red in the background.

Skotnes was exposed to and influenced by German Expressionism, particularly the artists Rudolf Scharpf (1919–2014), in printmaking, and Willi Baumeister (1889–1955), with whom he shared an interest in African and Aztec art as well as prehistoric and ancient cultures. Skotnes was inspired by archaeological sites, temples, churches and museums as well as mythological, biblical and historical heroes. Throughout his career, Skotnes combined the influence of German Expressionism with traditional African aesthetics in an attempt to understand the archetypes of humanity.