WHYTE'S IMPORTANT IRISH & INTERNATIONAL ART MONDAY 22 MARCH 2021 AT 6PM

106 75 Michael Canning (b.1971) A HISTORY OF HISTORY, 2006 (DIPTYCH) oil and wax on canvas laid on panel; (unframed) signed, titled and dated on reverse 48 by 72in. (121.9 by 182.9cm) Frame Dimensions: 0 by 0in. (0 by 0cm) Some minor scratches visible. Cracking visible on right panel on close inspection. This has not led to flaking of the paint. Otherwise good condition. Provenance: Jonathan Swift Gallery, Carrickfergus; Private collection Exhibited: ‘Recent Paintings by Michael Canning, David King, Colin Martin, Keith Wilson’ , Highlanes Gallery, Drogheda, 22 June to 2 September 2007 In the Highlanes Gallery catalogue, Ciarán Bennett writes: In the work of Michael Canning, we can contemplate the exotic images of apparently native plants in the warm mists of Renaissance Tuscany. The surface technique is reminiscent of Jasper Johns, recently described by the art critic of The New Yorker, Peter Schjeldahl, when describing the early work of Brice Marden, ‘He took practical guidance from the work of Jasper Johns and, adopted Johns’matte, fleshy medium of oils mixed with beeswax, brushing it on, then smoothing it with a kitchen spatula. ’ Canning’s titles often refer to the music he was listening to when making the paintings. The influence of midtwentieth century jazz, was explicit, yet there was something else, an indefinite sens of internal dialogue. Michael Canning is not a painter to speak about the essential qualities of his process. It could of course simply be an amalgam of appropriation, latent aestheticism, and a desire to paint the flora and fauna of his home in County Limerick. In larger works, for instance A History of History, there is a symbiotic quality of address, a conversation in space takes place amongst the plants. This is not only a technical decision of composition and placement, but also the latent musical sounds of their making, reflecting the co-existence of their presence. €8,000-€12,000 (£6,900-£10,340 approx.) Click here for more images and to bid on this lot75