Gimpel Fils, London, where acquired by Mrs Charles Benenson, August 1963
Gimpel Fils, London, where acquired by the present owner, November 2007

Alan Bowness, Alan Davie, Lund Humphries, London, 1967, cat. no.381.

Original canvas. There is a very minor undulation to the canvas the upper right corner, but otherwise it appears sound. There is some light scuffing to the upper right and lower right corners, and very light abrasions along the vertical edges, only visible upon close inspection. There is a light scuff in the upper right quadrant. There are a few possible tiny losses to the tips of impasto in a few places. There is an area of reticulation to the light blue pigment in the upper left quadrant. There is an area of craquelure to the black pigment in the upper right quadrant. There are small traces of matter, possibly tissue paper, to a few of the impasto elements in the lower right quadrant. There is possibly a very light bloom on some areas of the black pigment. There is some very minor surface dirt. Subject to the above the work appears to be in very good overall condition. Inspection under ultraviolet light reveals no obvious signs of restoration or retouching. The works is presented unframed. 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."

'When I am working, I am aware of a striving, a yearning, the making of many impossible attempts at a kind of transmutation - a searching for a formula for the magical conjuring of the unknowable. Many times the end seems just within reach, only to fly to pieces before me as I reach for it' (Alan Davie, quoted in Alan Bowness (ed.), Alan Davie, Lund Humphries, London, 1967).

Fuelled by visits to primitive collections held in majo꧃r museums, Davie’s fascination with prehistoric art stemmed from his belief that man’s common aesthetic sensibility could be traced back to the work of the artists of the ancient civilisations and that the artist's role was akin to that of a shaman.

Having established his reputation in the 1950s as a major international painter through the support of the likes of Peggy Guggenheim and Jackson Pollock, Davie sought to animate his own work with a greater animistic spirituality. More poetic titles, such as Flutter by Night, serve less to draw attention to the purely aesthetic qualities of the work and rather encourage a more profound engagement with the expressionist qualities of the c꧟omp🌼leted painting. 

Despite such an individual and unique conception, Davie is readily aligned with the great abstract painters of the later 20th century both within Britain and abroad. Davie was notably one of the first British artists to view the work of the American Abstract Expressionists when they were exhibited at the Greek Pavilion at the first Venice Biennale following WWII. There was a mutual understanding, as demonstrated by Jackson Pollock's comment on seeing a powerful work by Davie: 'I know exactly what he means, push and pull, black and white, good vs bad'. Flutter by Night reveals that same contrast between graduated tones of black and white within a busy and forceful composition that continue🍬s to pull the viewer in. Furthermore the title, hinting at the delicacy of an insects' wing juxtaposed with the darkness of night, reveals a more troubled dialogue that prov♒ides this work with depth and intellectual rigour.