A striking oil painting by one of the most important post-war artists, Adrian Heath, will go on display at Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Victoria Art Gallery from 29th September.
‘Composition – Black, Pink, Yellow and Grey’ was painted in 1957, around the time that Heath started teaching at Bath Academy of Art, which he helped to establish as one of the most adventurous art schools in Britain.
This is the first oil painting by Heath to be acquired by the Gallery, which is run by Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Its purchase was made possible by grants from the Arts Council England / V&A Purchase Grant Fund, the Art Fund and the Friends of the Victoria Art Gallery.
The total purchase price was £41,000.
Councillor Patrick Anketell-Jones (Conservative, Lansdown), the Council’s Cabinet Member for Economic Development, said: “This is a wonderful addition to the Victoria Art Gallery’s collection. The painting will be on display in the permanent galleries, which are free for everyone to visit.
“We are grateful to Arts Council England, the Art Fund and the Friends of the Victoria Art Gallery for enabling us to bring ‘Composition – Black, Pink, Yellow and Grey’ to Bath.”
Julia Brettell, National Programmes Manager at the Victoria and Albert Museum, said, “The ACE/V&A Purchase Grant Fund is pleased to support this acquisition.
“The Gallery is building a coherent collection of works by staff at the Academy and this painting well represents Heath’s long association with both the school and the city.”
Stephen Deuchar, Director of the Art Fund, said: “This is an attractive work by a well-respected figure in Post-War British abstraction.
“Heath’s connections to Bath make this acquisition particularly apposite, and the painting will complement the gallery’s existing holdings of works by his contemporaries.”
