Maggi Hambling (b. 1945) Wild Summer Sea - SOLD

Circa. 2009, oil in canvas, 29cm x 79cm / 45cm x 94cm  

Hambling  trained at the Ipswich School of Art,  Suffolk (1962-4),  at Camberwell School of Art (1964-7) and at the Slade School of Fine Art (1967-9). She received a Boise Travel Award to New York in 1969.

While artist-in-residence at the National Gallery, London (1980-81) Hambling produced a series of portraits of comedian Max Wall. Wall, responded to Hambling's request to paint him in a letter saying: 'Re: painting little me, I am flattered indeed - what colour?' The paintings were exhibited at the National Gallery in 1983 to much acclaim and helped secure her reputation. The numerous paintings and charcoal sketches from this series illustrate her superior observational skills and her direct engagement with her subject. Living in her native Suffolk during the mid 1980's, Hambling turned to painting the surrounding landscapes. Gambling worked from life and from the model. But to go beyond this level of realism in her work, she delved into her subconscious imaginings and her memories producing such vibrant compositions and textures as illustrated in her now famous series of North Sea paintings.