Jonas Wood - 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale London Tuesday, March 7, 2017 | Phillips

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  • Provenance

    Patrick De Brock Gallery, Knokke
    Acquired from the above by the present owner

  • Exhibited

    Knokke, Patrick De Brock Gallery, Jonas Wood, 5 - 29 August 2011

  • Catalogue Essay

    Despite the flatness of his graphic designs and the clear-cut geometric shapes which form his compositions, Jonas Wood’s art cannot be misunderstood as simplistic. In a permanent dialogue with the past, Wood’s paintings are charged with layers of art historical meaning. Through Wimbledon I, the artist uniquely engages with three recurring themes which dominate his oeuvre: portraits, interiors and sports.

    Wimbledon I may be initially perceived as the portrait of a resting tennis player. The full-bodied figure, dressed in sports attire with protruding Nike logos on both his sweatshirt and shoes, is holding one of three tennis balls. Yet, closer inspection quickly reveals this figure is actually a portrait hung within the context of a larger interior. The resulting sensation from this realisation is problematic. The pronounced linear angles which form this interior stress a lack of human presence. And yet, the imposing figure of the tennis player dominates the composition. By painting a painting on a wall, Wood interacts with the potential of his own creation. The implementation of multiple time narratives into a single, flat composition leads way to several interpretations. Are we faced with the portrait of a tennis player? Or is it to be merely understood as a decorated interior.

    Wood’s signature graphic style renders the scene somewhat fictional. The subtle presence of a second frame, placed on the left margin of the composition, accentuates on the notion that we are exposed with a specific area within a larger setting. Given its life-like dimensions, the viewer is thus invited to perceive the painting as an extension of their own physical location. The sole indication of depth, a rigid shade of the hung painting on its right, suggests the viewer is approaching the scene from a rightward angle.

    The result of Wood’s intriguing approach to painting is a balanced ecosystem of his own experiences, appropriated images and subtle sources of inspiration. The artist has identified himself as greatly influenced by emblematic figurative artists such as Henri Matisse, Alex Katz or David Hockney. Yet, as Michael Ned Holte notes, 'despite his recurring use of photography, it would be misleading to assign too much credit to the source image, rather than the painter translating it. Yes, these interiors exist or once existed, in life and in photographs, but they persist as paintings, evoking a sutured space of history and memory' (Michael Ned Holte, ‘Rooms’, Interiors: Jonas Wood, New York, p. 7).

30

Wimbledon I

signed with the artist's initials, dated and titled 'JBRW 2011 "Wimbledon I"' on the reverse
oil and acrylic on canvas
178 x 188 cm (70 1/8 x 74 in.)
Painted in 2011.

Estimate
£100,000 - 150,000 

Sold for £203,000

Contact Specialist
Henry Highley
Specialist, Head of Evening Sale
+ 44 20 7318 4061

20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale

London Auction 8 March 2017 5pm GMT