Douglas Portway

I thought that I might share images of work by a few of my favourite artists and I'll start off with the work on paper below that hangs on my wall at the bottom of my stairs. Being abstract I'm not sure what it depicts.



Douglas Portway (1922 - 1993) was born in Johannesburg and began painting and exhibiting in his native South Africa. After his first solo exhibition in 1945 his reputation grew to such an extent that he became the first South African to be awarded a travel grant from the Institute of International Education, which took him to the USA in 1952. In 1956 he was chosen to take part in the Venice Biennale and the following year he left South Africa for good and travelled to Europe, finally settling in Ibiza in 1959 and worked there for 7 years. During this period he had solo exhibitions at the Drian Gallery in London, as well as in Paris, Ibiza and South Africa.

In 1967 Portway moves to St. Ives in Cornwall and begins an association with the Marjorie Parr Gallery there and in London. From 1972 he also is able to buy a property in the Dordogne and spends part of the year there and the rest in St. Ives before selling up in Cornwall during the 1980s.

His work is to be found in the collections of the Tate Gallery, V&A Museum and the Scottish Gallery of Modern Art along with many other galleries in this country, Europe and South Africa.

I like it , there's a lot going on in it , I see a guy in shades on the right and breasts at the top but I wouldn't dare hazard a guess as to what it depicts though ,

I have had a number of items of his work over the years but kept this one.

He is quite sought after and on one occasion a lady came over from South Africa to have a look at a painting of his that I had, which she bought.

I have just had a browse through some of his work and am very impressed , thanks for pointing him out

I hope that you haven't just been focusing on the nudes!

I was just looking through an exhibition catalogue from a solo exhibition of his in London in 1965 and in the list of notable international collectors of his work there is listed one Eric Yates-Owen (of BSPM fame I assume). Always a studio pottery link.

Bloody potters they get everywhere don't they

Found a couple of images of Portway's work that I've sold in the past so thought I would add them.

First another "abstract"

.............. and a print.