Lot 25: Tom Fairs, A.R.C.A., N.E.A.C. (1925-2007)

Tom Fairs, A.R.C.A., N.E.A.C. (1925-2007)
Col de Coucheron
signed 'Tom Fairs' (on a label on the stretcher)
oil on canvas
44 x 30 in. (111.8 x 76.3 cm.)

TOM FAIRS, A.R.C.A., N.E.A.C. (1925-2007)
After studying at Hornsey School of Art and The Royal College of Art, Tom Fairs undertook several commissions, including working on the nave windows at Coventry Cathedral. He went on to teach fine art and stained glass at the Central School of Art and Design for over thirty years, becoming a senior lecturer in stage design.
It was only in retirement that he was able to focus on his painting and produce much of the work that became his legacy. Indeed it was this passion for his work that sustained him during his ill health in the latter part of his life.
Pierre Bonnard (see lot 147) was a constant source of artistic inspiration throughout Fairs' life. The parallels can be seen not only in their choice of subject matter but also in their heightened pallet and loose handling. Fairs' wife Elizabeth Russell Taylor commented that he brought to his paintings a "magical ability to absorb and transform as well as his own rare vision."
Fairs exhibited year after year at the Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition where his paintings consistently sold. However his unwillingness for self promotion meant that he remained something of a secret and his work has yet to receive the wide acclaim it deserves.
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