Dimensions: support: 489 x 762 mm frame: 707 x 976 x 25 mm
Copyright: CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Photo: Tate
Editor: This is John Piper’s "Somerset Place, Bath," held at the Tate. It’s quite evocative, almost haunting in its depiction of architecture. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The work is a fascinating study in contrasts. Note the interplay between the representational, with the depiction of the building itself, and the abstract—the expressive brushstrokes and washes of colour. Editor: So, it's less about depicting the building accurately and more about conveying a feeling? Curator: Precisely. Consider the composition: the stark, linear qualities of the architectural structure, juxtaposed against the fluid, almost chaotic, sky. How does that relationship strike you? Editor: It creates a sense of tension, as if the building is at odds with its environment. Thank you, I appreciate learning how the composition enhances the mood. Curator: Indeed. By attending to such formal elements, the work’s expressive potential is revealed.
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In 1942 Piper was suddenly sent to Bath following three nights of bombing there. He worked while the buildings were still burning. Reviewing an exhibition of war art at the National Gallery in October 1941 Piper wrote, 'after a war the controlled emotional record of actual events - the record made at once from experience and in the heat of the moment - is the only one that counts'. The watercolours he made in Bath provided the occasion for making such a record. They are the first to achieve the theatrical lighting effects typical of his work. Gallery label, August 2004
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