The Redfern Gallery, London, where acquired by Dr Sidney Charles Lewsen in 1955
Sale, Sotheby's London, 8th March 1995, lot 103, where acquired by David Bowie

Not viewed out of the frame. The sheet appears to be fully laid down onto a backing card. The right edge of the sheet is unevenly cut, which is thought to be in keeping with the artist's materials. There are several pinholes apparent at the edges of the sheet, thought to be in keeping with the artist's working method. There is a slight crease apparent at the lower right corner, with some further slight creases and evidence of wear around the edges of the sheet in one or two places. There is some scattered craquelure to the light blue and white gouache, predominantly in the upper left quadrant, with some cupping in places and a small fleck of possible loss just to the left of the peach bud. There are also some extremely tiny possible lines of craquleure apparent to the dark green pigment in the lower left quadrant, along with a minor crease to the sheet, and there are some very tiny speckles of loss to the black gouache in places. There is some light surface dirt and some slight discolouration to the sheet in places. Subject to the above, the work appears to be in good overall condition. The work is floated within a window mount and presented in a gilt wooden frame, held under glass. Please telephone the department on +44 (0) 207 293 6424 if you have any questions regarding the present work.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

After working as an Official War Artist in the Second World War, Graham Sutherland was approached by the Rev. Walter Hussey to create a work for the newly built church of St. Matthew in Northampton. He had been recommended by Henry Moore whose Northampton Madonna and Child had been unveiled in February 1944. Hussey’s commission was on the theme of The Agony in the Garden, and Sutherland in turn proposed the Crucifixion as a subject that he had been toying with for some time.

Su💙therland was close to the young and charismatic artist who took the London art scene by storm in the 1940s, Francis Bacon, and the two artists retained a lasting preoccupation with figures which show just the beginnings of a twisting distortion. Both fully appreciated the importance of a visible brutality in painting and conceived that art could no longer rest on its laurels, and instead should challenge and tackle the viewer head on.

After the war, Sutherland left behind the softly curling branches of his earlier compositions – compositions which, inspired by William Blake, had brought him fame and recognition in London as a Neo-Romanticist. He replaced them with a tortured brutality that aligned himself with contemporaries such as Bacon and Picasso (whom he had met at Vallauris in 1947). As an artist who explored the inner psyche, adapting and manipulating the subject before him to expand on broader inner questions, he exposed himself to an international audience: his first one man show outside of Britain was held in 1946 at the Buchholz Gallery in New York. His work became bolder and more confident in its 👍execution, as demonstrated by the defined black brushstrokes outlining the form in the present work which is matched with a heightened tonality and brighter palette.

While the Northampton painting took two and a half years to complete, it provided Sutherland with the opportunity to develop one of the most important and laꦇsting motifs of his career: that of the thorn bush. As the artist recalled in 1951:

‘I went into the country. For the first time I started to notice thorn bushes, and the structure of thorns as they pierced the air. I made some drawings, and as I made them, a curious change developed. As the thorns rearranged themselves, they became, whilst still retaining their own pricking, space-encompassing life, something else – a kind of ‘stand-in’ for a Crucifixion and a crucified head … The thorns sprang from the idea of potential cruelty’ (the Artist, quoted in Graham Sutherland, (exh. cat.), Tate, London, 1982, p.108).