Stairwell, 1948-49
During 2021, Pictures of the Month marked the 70th anniversary of Edwin's second solo exhibition by featuring 12 of the paintings he exhibited in Aug/Sep 1951. The exhibition focused on "New Paintings" and about 45 of the 58 paintings were either newly painted or never exhibited before.
Stairwell was painted in 1948-49, and 1951 was its first exhibition. At 2 metres long it is one of Edwin's largest paintings. It's also one of his most ambitious, containing figurative, abstract and still life elements, together with an Edinburgh cityscape. Many of the artistic movements that influenced Edwin's unique works are evident here, including surrealism, cubism, symbolism and abstraction.
Stairwell was painted in 1948-49, and 1951 was its first exhibition. At 2 metres long it is one of Edwin's largest paintings. It's also one of his most ambitious, containing figurative, abstract and still life elements, together with an Edinburgh cityscape. Many of the artistic movements that influenced Edwin's unique works are evident here, including surrealism, cubism, symbolism and abstraction.
Alan Lucas recalls the painting in the family home:
"Dad stored it in the basement and I don't remember it ever being hung on the walls. We sold it to an art dealer a few years after his death. I thought of it years later when we started exhibiting the paintings. I spoke to the dealer, but he didn't have any record of where it went and I thought it was lost for good. Then, completely out of the blue, it appeared in an auction in Hampshire in 2016. Apparently it had ended up in someone's barn. I tried to buy it back, but was outbid, so it has disappeared from view again. I hope it shows up again soon!"
"Dad stored it in the basement and I don't remember it ever being hung on the walls. We sold it to an art dealer a few years after his death. I thought of it years later when we started exhibiting the paintings. I spoke to the dealer, but he didn't have any record of where it went and I thought it was lost for good. Then, completely out of the blue, it appeared in an auction in Hampshire in 2016. Apparently it had ended up in someone's barn. I tried to buy it back, but was outbid, so it has disappeared from view again. I hope it shows up again soon!"