Lloyd Frederic Rees

Lloyd Frederick Rees (1895-1988) Woodford Bay, Lane Cove signed and dated(?) '41 L REES' (lower left) oil on canvas laid down on board 10 x 16in. (25.4 x 40.6cm.) Provenance Anon. sale, Sotheby's, Sydney, 15 Aug. 2000, lot 73A ($19,550). Anon. Sale, Christie's London, 12 Dec. 2007, lot 32.

PreviousNext 5 LLOYD REES (1895 – 1988) SONG TO CREATION - SKY, 1968-69 78.0 x 96.0 cm oil on canvas signed and dated lower left: L REES / 68–69 $140,000 – 180,000 Provenance Private collection, Sydney Thence by descent Private collection, Sydney Exhibited Lloyd Rees Retrospective , Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 2 October – 2 November 1969, cat. 101, (label attached verso) then touring to Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, November – December 1969; National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, 1 – 28 February 1970; Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart, 17 March –13 April 1970; Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, 1– 31 May 1970; Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth, 18 June – 21 July 1970; and Newcastle Regional Gallery, New South Wales, 1 – 31 August 1970 Literature Free, R., Lloyd Rees , Lansdowne Press, Melbourne, 1972, cat. O268, p. 91 (illus.) Related Works Song to Creation – Land , 1969, oil on canvas, 92.0 x 101.0 cm in Free, R., Lloyd Rees, Lansdowne Press, Melbourne, 1972, cat. O266, p. 90 (illus.) Song to Creation – Sea , 1969, oil on canvas, 81.5 x 96.5 cm in Free, R., Lloyd Rees , Lansdowne Press, Melbourne, 1972, cat. O267, p. 91 (illus.) Essay Three major paintings – Land, Sea and Sky – make up the Song to Creation series painted by Lloyd Rees in the late sixties. Each a striking work in its own right; together they form a group that is resonant with life through their use of colour, light and the engaging feeling of atmosphere. As a homage to Australia, they in turn focus on the rocky landscape, the restless waters of the sea, and the all encompassing sunlit air as hymns of visual praise. In her monograph on Rees, Renee Free says the series ‘expresses the great feeling for light, which dominates Rees’’’’ work in the years 1967 to 1969. Rees was elated for he felt his work had come to a climax.’’’’1 It was a time of climax both in creative achievement and recognition. To this period belong such masterly paintings as The Timeless Land 1965 and Australian Facade 1965 (both in private collections), and another important series of five paintings, Tribute to France 1969, including Country I (Beziers) in the collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and Cathedral I and II . In October 1969 a definitive retrospective exhibition organized by the Art Gallery of New South Wales opened its near year-long national tour in Sydney; and Ure Smith published Rees’’’’s book, The Small Treasures of a Lifetime . Rees’’’’s art captured the national imagination. Brett Whiteley in his In Appreciation for the Lloyd Rees Exhibition , described Rees as ‘our first Master.’’’’2 And in 1970 Rees was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters by the University of Sydney, where he taught with distinction. The Tribute to France and Song to Creation series were the most recent works in the exhibition, the crowning glory of the 101 oil paintings, followed by over fifty drawings of extraordinary draughtsmanship. The increasing influence of J.M.W. Turner in Rees’’’’s work is present in the Creation paintings, especially in the light saturated Sky where objects seem to dissolve in an overall radiant beauty. While the grandeur and majesty of the landscape as a wonder of creation is a central theme in Rees’’’’s oeuvre, it reaches a new level in Sky. There is also that deeply felt harmony between man and nature, renewed and extended in the presence of the foreground figure and the works of the human hand. A focal point is avoided to give an overall harmony. This is augmented through the broader handling of the paint, all imbued with a sense of wondrous praise in the perception of the sublime. 1. Free, op. cit., p. 90 2. Whiteley, B., 3 November 1969, quoted in ibid, p. 92 DAVID THOMAS

LOT 94 LLOYD FREDERIC REES 1895 - 1988 LANE COVE, SYDNEY signed and dated L. Rees/1937 lower left pencil on cream wove paper. Together with American School, 20thCentury, Garden Shed, signed with initials L.R., pen, black ink andwash on paper. 2 works. 2,500—3,500 USD the first 7 3/4 by 11 in.; the second 7 7/8 by 4 1/4 in. 19.7 by 27.9 cm; 20 by 10.8 cm signed and dated L. Rees/1937 lower left pencil on cream wove paper. Together with American School, 20thCentury, Garden Shed, signed with initials L.R., pen, black ink andwash on paper. 2 works. The first: Patrick Corrigan, SydneyMartin Browne, SydneyAcquired from the above, 1995 The first: Morgan, 2001, no. 120

Lloyd Rees (1895 - 1988) Bellevue Hill from Edgecliff Road, 1918 ink on paper 16.5 x 26.0cm, signed and dated l.l. 'Lloyd Rees/1918)' $8,000-12,000 PROVENANCE Macquarie Gallery Sydney (label attached verso); Christopher Day Gallery, Sydney (label attached verso; The Dawn O'Donnell Collection Sydney; The Dawn O'Donnell Bequest: NIDA Foundation, Sydney The Dawn O'Donnell Bequest: Important private collection beingoffered on behalf of the NIDA Foundation, Richard Martin Art,Sydney, 15 August - 2 September 2009

Lot 18 LLOYD REES (1895-1988) Northwood 1965 pencil and wash on paper 22.0 x 30.0 cm signed and dated lower right: L. REES/ 1965 Provenance: Bonython Galleries, Sydney Private collection, Sydney Estimate: $10,000- 15,000 Auction Title: Marksman - 0049 AUCTION 25 March 2010, 6.30pm 12 Todman Ave KENSINGTON NSW 2033 VIEWING MELBOURNE 11 - 14 March 2010, 11 am - 6 pm 1 Darling St SOUTH YARRA VIC 3141 VIEWING SYDNEY 18 - 24 March 2010, 11 am - 6pm 12 Todman Ave KENSINGTON NSW 2033 If you cannot attend the auction, you may either: Register to absentee bid on this lot Register to telephone bid on this lot Terms and Conditions Contact us regarding this lot Email a friend