Octopus, 1947
Tempera on board
76.0 x 63.8 cm (30 x 25 inches)

Provenance:
The Artist's Family

Exhibition History:
British Council Fine Arts Dept, Venice Biennale, 1952, No 75Cartwright Hall, Bradford, Octobr 1989 - January 1990, , Cat No 141a; Camden Arts Centre, London, March-April 1990, Cat No 141a

Literature:
Jeremy Lewison (editor), A Genius of Industrial England Edward Wadsworth 1889-1949, Arkwright Arts Trust & Bradford Art Galleries and Museums, 1990 (illus back cover in colour)

Notes:
During the Second World War, Wadsworth was prevented from visiting the coast due to a government ruling that affected the movement of individuals with German relations. The artist had always drawn inspiration from the sea, and it seems as though the enforced separation caused his perception of the coastal landscape to become increasingly abstract. His surreal wartime seascapes were filled with De Chirico-esque juxtapositions. They emphasised the mechanical aspects of the maritime - ships, tools and so on - alongside the natural.

Something of the melancoly feel of the war works is carried over into Octopus, with its disjointed, collage-like, composition. However, an increased interest in formal abstraction is revealed. In the same year, Wadsworth produced another work in tempera of almost identical size, Starfish and Shells, as a design for a large-scale tapestry. There are striking visual similarities that suggest Octopus was conceived of in the same way.

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