Lot 31

The work is in very good condition with no visible faults to report. Overall framed size 138 x 200cm
(LEONARD JOEL DELIVERY SIZE: LARGE)


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Art Galleries Schubert, Queensland 1998 (label verso)
Private collection, Melbourne

Charles Blackman remains one of Australia's most significant modern artists. His work explores subjects from schoolgirls and angels, to Alice in Wonderland and Orpheus, and white cats and bunny rabbits with an inherently lyrical perspective.

Blackman continues to enchant and intrigue us. His art is more concerned with intuition than with observation, with what is felt rather than with what is seen . It is this emotional intent that cuts through the wit of the unconscious, beneath what Freud referred to as the stage where the "dream-work" begins. Through the process of dreaming, Charles was able to dissect and highlight raw emotion - however pleasurable or difficult it might be.

In Dreamtime we see Charles' powerful ability to render a sense of light with dark. The use of black can traditionally bring forward a sense of anxiety and nervousness, however, here it also highlights the notion that this is an alternative reality, a dream, where the darkness leaves the mind open to possibility. As with many of Charles' paintings, we seek to interpret a deeper psychological meaning in the work.

At the fore is the natural world with all its delights - a sea of lush flowers connecting the four corners of this painting. The foliage moves across the canvas in a peaceful rhythm, with a scattering of blue flowers, both reminiscent of the magical world of Wonderland but also instilling the work with a sense of peace. At the centre is our subject - the dreaming figure. She rests atop a pillow of leaves, crowning her face with eyes peacefully closed. A hand comes forth from the darkness to reaffirm her presence. Although she is surrounded by the lush foliage, she is not dominated by its growth but rather at one with it. She appears to coagulate out of the blackened background, like a spirit, although we are left wondering if at any moment she could become engulfed. This is one of Charles' greatest skills as a painter - being able to impart a sense of calm yet subtle unease at the same time.

Olivia Fuller
Head of Art

(1) Alvarez, A., Rainforest: Charles Blackman, Macmillan, Melbourne, 1988, p. 2