Ian Armstrong (1923-2005) - 20th Century Gouache Australian Landscape

Description

A colourful and expressive landscape in vibrant gouache, showing the rolling fields and scrub land of Australia under a bright blue sky. The artist has signed to the lower left and the painting has been presented in a simple wood box frame with layered card mount. On laid.

Condition

The condition is typical for a picture of this age including some discolouration. The frame has some scuffing.

Size

45 x 56.7cm (17.7" x 22.3")
Framed Size: 64.2 x 74.3cm (25.3" x 29.3")

Artist Biography

Armstrong was born in the Melbourne suburb of Malvern.
In 1951, Armstrong controversially shared the Commonwealth Jubilee Travelling Scholarship with Michelle Wunderlich to the Slade School in London. During his time at the Slade an introduction to printmaking led to classes in etching and lithography - media he has excelled in ever since. On the return journey to Australia he met Kathleen Parker. They married in Melbourne in 1954.
In 1960 Armstrong was appointed Drawing Master at the National Gallery School, teaching alongside John Brack and Marc Clarke. In 1966 Armstrong resigned from the National Gallery School commencing a full-time painting career which he continued for the rest of his life, supplemented with intermittent teaching at the C.A.E and private classes at his home studio in Blackburn.

In 1965 the Australia Galleries in Collingwood exhibited Twelve Portraits by Ian Armstrong, which included the striking full-length portrait, David Lawrence 1965, acquired by the National Gallery of Victoria and Helen Brack 1965, acquired by State Library of Victoria. "In each of these paintings Armstrong relies not only on the face to describe character, but also the entire pose."
In the early 1970s, after suffering ill health and needing a change, Armstrong and his family moved to Wedderburn in central Victoria for a year, to paint the landscape and recover his health. His landscapes and portraits from this time have been exhibited widely and are represented in many regional galleries and private collections.