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Dick Watkins Sold at Auction Prices

Painter, b. 1937 -

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      • Watkins, Richard John: Komposition ohne Titel
        Nov. 22, 2024

        Watkins, Richard John: Komposition ohne Titel

        Est: €600 - €1,200

        Watkins, Richard John - Untitled composition (New South Wales 1937 b.) Ink/paper. Signed and dated lower right. ''(19)80''. Approx. 42 x 61 cm; framed under glass. - Frame defects, handmade paper wavy. // Watkins, Richard John Komposition ohne Titel (New South Wales 1937 geb.) Tusche/Papier. Rechts unten sign. und dat. ''(19)80''. Ca. 42 x 61 cm; unter Glas ger. - Rahmenmängel, Büttenpapier wellig.

        Kunstauktionshaus Schlosser
      • RICHARD (DICK) WATKINS (BORN 1937), Quine’s Point 1995
        Oct. 27, 2024

        RICHARD (DICK) WATKINS (BORN 1937), Quine’s Point 1995

        Est: $5,000 - $8,000

        RICHARD (DICK) WATKINS (BORN 1937) Quine's Point 1995 oil on canvas signed, dated and titled on stretcher verso: R Watkins 16 - 1 - 95 / QUINE'S POINT 137 x 183cm PROVENANCE Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne Julian Burnside & Kate Durham Collection, Melbourne © Richard Watkins/Copyright Agency, 2024

        Gibson's
      • DICK WATKINS, GANCHO 1983, OIL ON CANVAS, INITIALED LOWER CENTRE, 25.5 X 35.5CM
        Jul. 18, 2024

        DICK WATKINS, GANCHO 1983, OIL ON CANVAS, INITIALED LOWER CENTRE, 25.5 X 35.5CM

        Est: $1,400 - $1,800

        DICK WATKINS, GANCHO 1983, OIL ON CANVAS, INITIALED LOWER CENTRE, 25.5 X 35.5CM

        Leonard Joel
      • DICK WATKINS, (1937 -), Untitled, 1990, acrylic on paper, 56 x 75cm
        Jul. 10, 2024

        DICK WATKINS, (1937 -), Untitled, 1990, acrylic on paper, 56 x 75cm

        Est: $2,000 - $3,000

        DICK WATKINS (1937 - ) Untitled, 1990 acrylic on paper Signed "RW" and dated "90" lower left

        Lawsons
      • DICK WATKINS, GANCHO 1983, OIL ON CANVAS, INITIALED LOWER CENTRE, 25.5 X 35.5CM
        Jul. 04, 2024

        DICK WATKINS, GANCHO 1983, OIL ON CANVAS, INITIALED LOWER CENTRE, 25.5 X 35.5CM

        Est: $2,000 - $3,000

        DICK WATKINS, GANCHO 1983, OIL ON CANVAS, INITIALED LOWER CENTRE, 25.5 X 35.5CM

        Leonard Joel
      • Dick Watkins, (b. 1937), Blue Found, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 101 x 76 cm
        May. 21, 2024

        Dick Watkins, (b. 1937), Blue Found, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 101 x 76 cm

        Est: $4,000 - $6,000

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937) Blue Found, 2020 acrylic on canvas titled, signed and dated verso 'Blue Found, R. Watkins, 18-8-20'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Dick Watkins, (b. 1937), Untitled, 1990, acrylic on paper, 56 x 75 cm
        Mar. 12, 2024

        Dick Watkins, (b. 1937), Untitled, 1990, acrylic on paper, 56 x 75 cm

        Est: $2,000 - $3,000

        † Dick Watkins (b. 1937) Untitled, 1990 acrylic on paper signed and dated l.l.c. ‘RW, '90'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Watkins, Richard John: Komposition ohne Titel
        Nov. 24, 2023

        Watkins, Richard John: Komposition ohne Titel

        Est: €600 - €1,200

        Watkins, Richard John - Untitled composition (New South Wales 1937 b.) Ink/paper. Signed and dated lower right. ''(19)80''. Approx. 42 x 61 cm; framed under glass. - Frame defects, handmade paper wavy. // Watkins, Richard John Komposition ohne Titel (New South Wales 1937 geb.) Tusche/Papier. Rechts unten sign. und dat. ''(19)80''. Ca. 42 x 61 cm; unter Glas ger. - Rahmenmängel, Büttenpapier wellig.

        Kunstauktionshaus Schlosser
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937)* Untitled, 1990
        Nov. 20, 2023

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937)* Untitled, 1990

        Est: $2,000 - $3,000

        acrylic on paper, signed and dated l.l.c. 'RW, '90'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937)* Untitled, 1990
        Nov. 20, 2023

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937)* Untitled, 1990

        Est: $2,000 - $3,000

        acrylic on paper, signed and dated l.l.c. 'RW, '90'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937) Rust, 2020
        Nov. 20, 2023

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937) Rust, 2020

        Est: $3,000 - $5,000

        acrylic on canvas, titled, signed and dated verso 'Rust, R. Watkins, 27-5-20'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • DICK WATKINS, UNTITLED, 1990
        Sep. 05, 2023

        DICK WATKINS, UNTITLED, 1990

        Est: $10,000 - $15,000

        DICK WATKINS born 1937 UNTITLED, 1990 synthetic polymer paint on canvas 167.0 x 167.0 cm signed with initials lower left: RW PROVENANCE Gift from the artist to Rollin Schlicht, Sydney Thence by descent Private collection, Sydney Menzies, Melbourne, 31 October 2013, lot 18 Private collection, Melbourne Private collection, Adelaide © Dick Watkins/Copyright Agency 2023 This work is located in our Melbourne Gallery

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • Dick Watkins (born 1937) Woman #17, 1993
        Aug. 29, 2023

        Dick Watkins (born 1937) Woman #17, 1993

        Est: $6,000 - $9,000

        Dick Watkins (born 1937) Woman #17, 1993 titled, dated and signed verso on stretcher: ''WOMAN #17' R. Watkins 22.8.93' oil on canvas 167.0 x 121.5cm (65 3/4 x 47 13/16in).

        Bonhams
      • Dick Watkins (born 1937) French Village, 1993
        Apr. 04, 2023

        Dick Watkins (born 1937) French Village, 1993

        Est: $6,000 - $8,000

        Dick Watkins (born 1937) French Village, 1993 titled verso: 'FRENCH VILLAGE' synthetic polymer paint on canvas 122.0 x 152.0cm (48 1/16 x 59 13/16in).

        Bonhams
      • WATKINS Dick (b.1937), Study for Mural, Acrylic on Bainbridge Board, 30x91cm
        Dec. 04, 2022

        WATKINS Dick (b.1937), Study for Mural, Acrylic on Bainbridge Board, 30x91cm

        Est: $800 - $1,500

        WATKINS, Dick (b.1937) Study for Mural Unsigned Acrylic on Bainbridge Board 30x91cm PROVENANCE: Australian Corporate Collection

        Davidson Auctions
      • DICK WATKINS, EPISTROPHY, 1973
        Dec. 01, 2022

        DICK WATKINS, EPISTROPHY, 1973

        Est: $12,000 - $18,000

        DICK WATKINS born 1937 EPISTROPHY, 1973 synthetic polymer paint on canvas 122.0 x 162.5 cm signed, dated and inscribed with title verso: “EPISTROPHY” ⁄ DICK WATKINS ⁄ 1973 PROVENANCE David Bluford, Sydney Laverty collection, Sydney, acquired from the above in December 1986 

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • WATKINS Dick (b.1937), Poster for 'Splurge,' 1968., S/Print, 45.5x45.5cm (image)
        Aug. 21, 2022

        WATKINS Dick (b.1937), Poster for 'Splurge,' 1968., S/Print, 45.5x45.5cm (image)

        Est: $500 - $700

        WATKINS, Dick (b.1937) Poster for 'Splurge,' 1968. These posters sold through Central Street Gallery, Sydney in 1968 for $2 each. S/Print 45.5x45.5cm (image)

        Davidson Auctions
      • DICK WATKINS, SCOOP, 1991
        Aug. 09, 2022

        DICK WATKINS, SCOOP, 1991

        Est: $15,000 - $20,000

        DICK WATKINS born 1937 SCOOP, 1991 synthetic polymer paint on canvas 152.0 x 243.5 cm signed with initials, dated and inscribed with title on stretcher bar verso: SCOOP R.W. 1991 PROVENANCE Yuill/Crowley Gallery, Sydney Private collection Christie's, Sydney, 13 August 2000, lot 54 The Cbus Collection of Australian Art, Melbourne, acquired from the above EXHIBITED Dick Watkins, Yuill/Crowley Gallery, Sydney, 1 – 25 April 1992 on long term loan to Newcastle Region Art Gallery, New South Wales, prior to 2006 (label attached verso) on long term loan to Gippsland Art Gallery, Victoria  LITERATURE Nainby, B., Stanhope, Z., and Furlonger, K., The Cbus Collection of Australian Art, in association with Latrobe Regional Gallery, Melbourne, 2009, p. 237 This work is located in our Sydney Gallery © Dick Watkins/Copyright Agency 2022

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • RICHARD JOHN (DICK) WATKINS - NIGHT IN TUNISIA - Oil on canvas
        May. 24, 2022

        RICHARD JOHN (DICK) WATKINS - NIGHT IN TUNISIA - Oil on canvas

        Est: $8,000 - $12,000

        RICHARD JOHN (DICK) WATKINS (B.1937) NIGHT IN TUNISIA Signed, titled and dated 1973 verso Oil on canvas 122 x 162cm $8,000/12,000

        GFL Fine Art
      • DICK WATKINS, ANTHROPOLOGY, 1973
        Feb. 22, 2022

        DICK WATKINS, ANTHROPOLOGY, 1973

        Est: $15,000 - $20,000

        DICK WATKINS born 1937 ANTHROPOLOGY, 1973 synthetic polymer paint on canvas 122.0 x 165.5 cm signed, dated and inscribed with title verso: ANTHROPOLOGY DICK WATKINS 1973 PROVENANCE Probably: Coventry Gallery, Sydney Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne The National Australia Bank Art Collection, acquired from the above in 1975 (label attached verso) EXHIBITED The Seventies: Australian Paintings and Tapestries from the Collection of National Australia Bank, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, 15 October – 28 November 1982 The Seventies: Australian Paintings and Tapestries from the Collection of National Australia Bank, Geelong Art Gallery, Victoria, 30 April - 29 May 1988 The Seventies: Contemporary Australian Paintings from the National Australia Bank Collection, organised by Regional Galleries Association of New South Wales, New South Wales, cat. 28; and touring, Tamworth City Art Gallery, New South Wales, 24 May – 24 June 1990; Dubbo Regional Art Gallery, New South Wales, 11 July – 6 August 1990; Wagga Wagga City Art Gallery, New South Wales, 17 August – 10 September 1990; Moree Plains Regional Gallery, New South Wales, 3 October – 31 October 1990 LITERATURE Lindsay, R., The Seventies: Australian Paintings and Tapestries from the Collection of National Australia Bank, The National Bank of Australasia, Melbourne, 1982, pl. 95, p. 108 (illus.) ESSAY Dick Watkins is one of Australia finest formalist and painterly abstractionists of his generation. Critical and curatorial interest in his work has never hesitated in a career spanning more than five decades. He is an artist with the rare gift of taking his initial conception to realisation, and when the resolution of pictorial form is achieved, he can effortlessly change stylistic emphasis.   With an interest in European Modernism and North American abstraction, Watkins represents an autodidactic curiosity and understanding. Between 1959 – 1961 he travelled and saw the work of those who would shape his future. An unwavering interest in Picasso, Matisse and Jackson Pollock and other New School painters became the wellspring of his thinking about making paintings. This intellectual inquiry and working in the studio was always a source of influence, not appropriation. While the influences are often apparent they are used as aesthetic and stylistic yardsticks and become unmistakably personal. Watkins’ approach was explored in the exhibition Dick Watkins in Context: An Exhibition from the Collection of the National Gallery of Australia. In the company of greats from Picasso and Matisse to Robert Rauschenberg, de Kooning, Robert Motherwell and Jackson Pollock it was a gesture of astonishing respect for an Australian artist.1   Surface flatness, clarity of form and colour reached a distinctive culmination for Watkins when The Mooche, 1968 was exhibited and praised critically in The Field exhibition in 1968.2 A distinct shift followed.   In the earlier, Untitled, 1970, deftly controlled drips and sweeps of black paint become a stained choreographed calligraphy. The execution is flowing and lyrical with each action held in check.3 In Anthropology, painted three years later, a commanding robustness energises the surface. The looping and swirling lyricism in black, blue and silver-grey inflections is quite unlike Australian lyrical abstraction of the time – its unapologetic debt to Abstract Expressionism becomes a rethinking of a painterly genre which had held a lifelong preoccupation.   Watkins’ colour is invariably muted, no glaring primaries, no shrillness. One aspect of his post-colourfield work is the use of colour as a flat plane which is activated with rapidly brushed black gestures. Another is where coloured sgraffito-like forms are further delineated with black. Anthropology embraces a confidence and sheer exuberance where correction, erasure and overpainting is not possible. The ambition and clarity of Watkins’ intention is unequivocal in its realisation.   1. Dick Watkins in Context: An Exhibition from the Collection of the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, 1993 2. The Field, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, 1968 – a landmark exhibition of Colourfield abstraction to mark the opening of the NGV at its new StKilda Road premises. The Mooche, 1968, synthetic polymer paint and oil on canvas, collection of the Queensland Art Gallery / Gallery of Modern Art 3. Dick Watkins, Untitled, 1970, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Gift of Penelope Seidler, 2001   DOUG HALL AM © Dick Watkins/Copyright Agency 2022

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937)
        Nov. 23, 2021

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $2,000 - $3,000

        Untitled, c. 1980 mixed media on paper, signed l.m. 'Watkins'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Richard Howells Watkins. The Air Murders.
        Nov. 18, 2021

        Richard Howells Watkins. The Air Murders.

        Est: $200 - $400

        Scarce. 1st edition in Dust Jacket. NY 1929. From the Otto Penzler Collection.

        Weiss Auctions
      • DICK WATKINS (born 1937) Three Figures 1984 oil on canvas
        Dec. 01, 2020

        DICK WATKINS (born 1937) Three Figures 1984 oil on canvas

        Est: $10,000 - $15,000

        DICK WATKINS (born 1937) Three Figures 1984 oil on canvas signed, titled and dated verso: 'THREE FIGURES' / R. WATKINS / 1984 168 x 122cm PROVENANCE: 312 Lennox Street Gallery, Melbourne Private collection, Melbourne Deutscher and Hackett, Sydney, 28 April 2010, lot 110 Private collection, Melbourne

        Leonard Joel
      • Dick Watkins (1937 - ) - No. 14, 1971 152 x 157 cm (total: 152 x 157 x 4 cm )
        Jun. 25, 2020

        Dick Watkins (1937 - ) - No. 14, 1971 152 x 157 cm (total: 152 x 157 x 4 cm )

        Est: $6,000 - $8,000

        Dick Watkins (1937 - ) No. 14, 1971 ink on canvas 152 x 157 cm (total: 152 x 157 x 4 cm ) signed on stretcher bar verso

        Lawsons
      • Dick Watkins (1937 - ) - Night in Tunisia, 1973 122 x 162.5 cm (total: 122 x 162.5 x 5 cm)
        Jun. 25, 2020

        Dick Watkins (1937 - ) - Night in Tunisia, 1973 122 x 162.5 cm (total: 122 x 162.5 x 5 cm)

        Est: $8,000 - $12,000

        Dick Watkins (1937 - ) Night in Tunisia, 1973 oil on canvas 122 x 162.5 cm (total: 122 x 162.5 x 5 cm) inscribed, dated and titled verso

        Lawsons
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937)
        Nov. 26, 2019

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $800 - $1,200

        Untitled II, 1993 oil on paper, initialled and dated l.l.c. 'R. W. '93'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937)
        Oct. 29, 2019

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $1,000 - $1,500

        Head, 1990 acrylic on paper, signed and dated l.l.c. 'R.W., '90'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • DICK WATKINS born 1937, Somewhere 1998
        Jun. 27, 2019

        DICK WATKINS born 1937, Somewhere 1998

        Est: $10,000 - $15,000

        DICK WATKINS born 1937, Somewhere 1998 synthetic polymer paint on canvas 136.0 x 213.0 cm signed with initials lower right: RW signed, dated and inscribed verso: 'Somewhere'/ R. Watkins/ 14-2-98/ 6.5.98 Martin Browne Fine Art, Sydney Private collection, Sydney Sotheby's, Melbourne, 26 November 2013, lot 22 Private collection, Melbourne Dick Watkins: Marks and Angles, Martin Browne Fine Art, Sydney, 10 July - 5 August 2001, cat.5

        Menzies
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937)
        Feb. 26, 2019

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $1,000 - $1,500

        Untitled, 2001, acrylic on paper, signed and dated l.r.c. 'R.W.'01'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Dick Watkins (b. 1937)
        Feb. 26, 2019

        Dick Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $2,000 - $3,000

        Untitled, 2007, carborundum print on four sheets of paper, edition: 1/5, signed and dated l.r.c. 'R.W. '07' Liverpool Street Gallery, East Sydney

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Attrib WATKINS, Richard (Dick) (b.1937)
        Dec. 09, 2018

        Attrib WATKINS, Richard (Dick) (b.1937)

        Est: $50 - $100

        Attrib WATKINS, Richard (Dick) (b.1937) 'Orchard near Dural'. Signed lower left; inscribed with title verso Pastel 28x49cm

        Davidson Auctions
      • DICK WATKINS, born 1937, DOCTOR BLUES, 1989, synthetic polymer paint on canvas
        Nov. 28, 2018

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, DOCTOR BLUES, 1989, synthetic polymer paint on canvas

        Est: $6,000 - $8,000

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, DOCTOR BLUES, 1989, synthetic polymer paint on canvas SIGNED: signed, dated and inscribed with title verso: ‘Doctor Blues’ // R. Watkins. 1989 DIMENSIONS: 152.0 x 107.0 cm PROVENANCE: Yuill/Crowley, Sydney The Collection of Colin and Elizabeth Laverty, Sydney LITERATURE: Loxley, A., ‘The Laverty Collection’, Art and Australia, Fine Arts Press Pty Limited, Sydney, Spring 1996, vol. 34, no. 1, p. 72 (illus.)

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • WATKINS, Richard John (Dick) (b.1937) - 'Friends,' 1998. Signed & inscribed verso 23/2/98
        Nov. 04, 2018

        WATKINS, Richard John (Dick) (b.1937) - 'Friends,' 1998. Signed & inscribed verso 23/2/98

        Est: $1,500 - $3,000

        WATKINS, Richard John (Dick) (b.1937) 'Friends,' 1998. Signed & inscribed verso 23/2/98 Acrylic on Canvas 152x152cm

        Davidson Auctions
      • Attrib WATKINS, Richard (Dick) (b.1937) - 'Orchard near Dural'. Signed lower left; inscribed with title verso
        Nov. 04, 2018

        Attrib WATKINS, Richard (Dick) (b.1937) - 'Orchard near Dural'. Signed lower left; inscribed with title verso

        Est: $80 - $150

        Attrib WATKINS, Richard (Dick) (b.1937) 'Orchard near Dural'. Signed lower left; inscribed with title verso Pastel 28x49cm

        Davidson Auctions
      • Painting with Two Orche Balls - Richard John (Dick) Watkins (1937- ) Australia
        Aug. 27, 2018

        Painting with Two Orche Balls - Richard John (Dick) Watkins (1937- ) Australia

        Est: $9,000 - $12,000

        Painting with Two Orche Balls - Richard John (Dick) Watkins (1937- ) Australia

        Colville Auctions
      • DICK WATKINS born 1937, Escape 1984
        Aug. 09, 2018

        DICK WATKINS born 1937, Escape 1984

        Est: $10,000 - $15,000

        DICK WATKINS born 1937, Escape 1984 153.0 x 156.5 cm signed, dated and inscribed verso: "ESCAPE"/ R WATKINS./ 1984 synthetic polymer paint on canvas

        Menzies
      • WATKINS, Richard John (Dick) (b.1937)
        Jul. 29, 2018

        WATKINS, Richard John (Dick) (b.1937)

        Est: $2,000 - $4,000

        'Friends,' 1998. Signed & inscribed verso 23/2/98 Acrylic on Canvas 152x152cm

        Davidson Auctions
      • WATKINS, Richard John (Dick) (b.1937)
        Jul. 29, 2018

        WATKINS, Richard John (Dick) (b.1937)

        Est: $6,000 - $8,000

        'Mahler's Ghost,' 1998. Signed & inscribed verso 17/2/98 Acrylic on Canvas 152x122cm

        Davidson Auctions
      • DICK WATKINS (born 1937) Zoo Quest 1998 acrylic on canvas
        Nov. 28, 2017

        DICK WATKINS (born 1937) Zoo Quest 1998 acrylic on canvas

        Est: $12,000 - $18,000

        DICK WATKINS (born 1937) Zoo Quest 1998 acrylic on canvas initialed lower right: RW signed, titled and dated verso 152 x 214cm PROVENANCE: Martin Browne Fine Art, Sydney, 1999 Private collection, Sydney EXHIBITIONS: Dick Watkins, Recent Work 1998-1999, Martin Browne Fine Art, 28 April - 23 May 1999, cat no.9.

        Leonard Joel
      • Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)
        Nov. 22, 2017

        Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $8,000 - $12,000

        Still Life, 1984, oil on canvas, titled, signed and dated verso 'Still Life, R. Watkins, 1984'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)
        Jul. 25, 2017

        Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $1,000 - $1,500

        Untitled, 1993, oil on paper, initialled and dated l.l.c. 'R. W. '93', 56 x 76 cm, Provenance: Leonard Joel, The Sunday Art Auction, Melbourne, 28/08/2011, Lot No. 348

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)
        May. 09, 2017

        Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $3,000 - $5,000

        Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937) Untitled, 1998 oil on canvas, signed and dated l.r.c. 'RW, '98'

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)
        May. 09, 2017

        Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937)

        Est: $8,000 - $12,000

        Richard (Dick) Watkins (b. 1937) The French Village, 1993 acrylic on canvas, signed, titled and dated verso 'The French Village, Dick Watkins, 1993' Niagara Galleries, Melbourne

        Shapiro Auctioneers
      • Dick Watkins (1937 - ) - Untitled, 1986 36 x 53cm
        Apr. 13, 2017

        Dick Watkins (1937 - ) - Untitled, 1986 36 x 53cm

        Est: $500 - $700

        Dick Watkins (1937 - ) Untitled, 1986 acrylic and crayon on paper 36 x 53cm initialled and dated lower left

        Lawsons
      • DICK WATKINS, born 1937, UNTITLED, 1972, synthetic polymer paint on canvas
        Apr. 05, 2017

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, UNTITLED, 1972, synthetic polymer paint on canvas

        Est: $15,000 - $20,000

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, UNTITLED, 1972, synthetic polymer paint on canvas SIGNED: signed, dated and inscribed with title on stretcher verso: UNTITLED / 1972 / WATKINS DIMENSIONS: 142.5 x 165.0 cm PROVENANCE: Yuill/Crowley, Sydney The Collection of Colin and Elizabeth Laverty, Sydney, acquired from the above in July 1985 EXHIBITED: Australia – Dick Watkins, XVII Bienal de São Paulo, Brazil, 4 October – 15 December 1985, cat. 2 (illus. in exhibition catalogue) (label attached verso) Dick Watkins: A Retrospective, Manly Art Gallery and Museum, Sydney, then touring to Broken Hill City Art Gallery, 13 March 1986 Paintings from the Laverty Collection, Union Club, Sydney, 26 November 2008 – 11 June 2009 ESSAY: ‘The way I start a picture is purely intuitive. Each time I have a certain optimism that this will be the ideal painting, the masterpiece, and that is what I believe painting should try to do. It should be an attempt to make something beautiful and powerful at the same time. I think that what Pollock did is ideal. That’s how an Abstract picture should be painted.’1 The artist’s own words in a meaningful interview with Grazia Gunn in 19832 describe perfectly the complex dialogue between Watkins and the master of North American Abstract Expressionism, Jackson Pollock, which is clearly exemplified in Untitled, 1972. This powerful abstract painting in landscape format, featuring gestural darts, arcs, drips and splatters in navy and royal blue, raspberry red and black applied directly on canvas without priming, was executed in the same manner used by Pollock, defined as ‘drip painting’ or ‘action painting’. Watkins would have worked on the unstretched canvas placed on the floor, using very fluid synthetic polymer paint and letting the colour drip from the brush in mid-air, even at times pouring the paint directly from the can and using his hands to spread it (a mark of the artist’s hand is clearly visible on the top centre section of the painting). Self-taught, Watkins travelled to Europe, London and New York between 1959 and 1961, thus gaining first hand access to ground-breaking, seminal masterpieces of modernism and abstraction which played a key role in shaping his practice. Watkins himself has described his oeuvre as a product of Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock. 3 Often been described as a ‘chameleon’ or ‘bricoleur’, his experimental style is a tribute to constant inquisition into other artists, styles and philosophies. Indeed, many of Watkins’ paintings suggest aspects of other artists’ work, but are ultimately entirely his own. As Imants Tillers points out in the essay accompanying the São Paulo Biennial catalogue, it is not a conscious attempt to emulate other artists’ work, it happens automatically. This kind of exact spontaneous correspondence is more like a synchronicity or coincidence of images with the original, and in many ways is a far more remarkable achievement than the original.4 Representing Australia in the São Paulo Biennial was validation of Watkins’ status as a prominent international artist. Established in 1951, São Paulo is the second longest running biennale in the world after Venice (established in 1895). The 1985 retrospective exhibition was curated by Noela Yuill, who had a long professional association with Watkins, and witnessed the arrival and spread of ‘the new abstraction’ in Australia through her involvement with the Contemporary Art Society and the Central Street Gallery. Another highlight in Watkins’ career, spanning over five decades, was his inclusion in the ground-breaking 1968 exhibition The Field at the newly opened National Gallery of Victoria. There he was singled out by the influential American critic, Clement Greenberg, as Australia’s finest painter.5 In 1993, the artist was honoured with an exhibition at the National Gallery of Australia, where his work was hung alongside those of the European and American Masters who shaped his passion and oeuvre, among them Robert Rauschenberg and Ellsworth Kelly, as well as Matisse, Picasso and Pollock. As curator Barbara Dowse remarked, ‘What emerged from that juxtaposition, is that irrespective of the sources implicated in his paintings, Watkins continues to pit himself against these mentors and rivals to wrest a mature style which is distinctively and recognisably his own.’6 1. Watkins, D., quoted in Gunn, G., ‘Dick Watkins’, Art and Australia, Sydney, vol. 21, no. 2, Summer 1983, p. 210 2. Gunn, G., op. cit., pp. 210 – 216 3. Ibid., p. 216 4. Tillers, I., ‘The Paradox of Dick Watkins’, in Dick Watkins, XVIII Bienal de São Paulo, Brazil, 4 October– 15 December 1985, The Broken Hill City Art Gallery, New South Wales, cat. 2, p. 21 (illus.) 5. Lumby, C., ‘Dick Watkins, An Artist’s Artist’, Australian Art Collector, Sydney, issue 31, January – March 2005, p. 137 6. Dowse, B., Dick Watkins, Liverpool Street Gallery, accessed online 18 February 2017 ELENA SCOTT

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • DICK WATKINS, born 1937, UNTITLED (BLACK AND WHITE), 1990, synthetic polymer paint on Velin Arches paper
        Apr. 05, 2017

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, UNTITLED (BLACK AND WHITE), 1990, synthetic polymer paint on Velin Arches paper

        Est: $1,000 - $1,500

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, UNTITLED (BLACK AND WHITE), 1990, synthetic polymer paint on Velin Arches paper SIGNED: signed with initials and dated lower centre: RW 90 DIMENSIONS: 56.0 x 75.5 cm PROVENANCE: Yuill/Crowley, Sydney The Collection of Colin and Elizabeth Laverty, Sydney, acquired from the above in January 1992 EXHIBITED: Paintings from the Laverty Collection, Union Club, Sydney, 20 September 2004 – 15 July 2005

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • DICK WATKINS, born 1937, SUMMER DAZE, 1982, synthetic polymer paint on canvas
        Apr. 05, 2017

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, SUMMER DAZE, 1982, synthetic polymer paint on canvas

        Est: $15,000 - $20,000

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, SUMMER DAZE, 1982, synthetic polymer paint on canvas SIGNED: signed, dated and inscribed with title verso: ‘SUMMER DAZE’ / 5/7/82 / R Watkins DIMENSIONS: 172.5 x 249.0 cm PROVENANCE: Yuill/Crowley, Sydney The Collection of Colin and Elizabeth Laverty, Sydney, acquired from the above in December 1991 EXHIBITED: Yuill/Crowley, Sydney, 1982 On the Beach, Macquarie Galleries, Sydney, April – May 1985

        Deutscher and Hackett
      • DICK WATKINS, born 1937, HARLEM AIRSHAFT, 1978, synthetic polymer paint on composition board
        Apr. 05, 2017

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, HARLEM AIRSHAFT, 1978, synthetic polymer paint on composition board

        Est: $10,000 - $15,000

        DICK WATKINS, born 1937, HARLEM AIRSHAFT, 1978, synthetic polymer paint on composition board SIGNED: signed and dated verso: R. Watkins / 1978 inscribed with title verso: “HARLEM AIRSHAFT” DIMENSIONS: 122.5 x 183.5 cm PROVENANCE: Yuill/Crowley, Sydney The Collection of Colin and Elizabeth Laverty, Sydney, acquired from the above in August 1985 EXHIBITED: Paintings from the Laverty Collection, Union Club, Sydney, 20 September 2004 – 15 July 2005 LITERATURE: ‘Exhibition Commentary’, Art and Australia, Sydney, vol. 17, no. 1, September 1979, p. 43 (illus.)

        Deutscher and Hackett
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