Page 20 - Studio International - January February 1975

New paintings

by Ben Nicholson

Geoffrey Grigson
Some day, I feel sure, there will be Mondrian the next), is of the dirty black blackbird which flies in low over the
published a selection of Ben Nicholson's trousers flapping around Mondrian's terrace (especially in frosty weather when
self-recorded perceptions. They will be legs and the clatter of the trains the berries must be pretty good food) and
found memorable, moving and underneath. Nicholson's recollection had into the depth of the holly tree. I looked
encouraging, they will be long valued, been of pictures new to him, but not then into the centre of this one day and there
like one of the rare lyrical diaries or understood, 'different sized squares was the bird, same tone, same colour as
note books, both for themselves and painted with primary red, blue and the stem of the tree and "looking" at me
because they will be an appendix to this yellow — and white and pale grey'. They steadily with one eye. Now here is an
master's performance. were part of the feeling of the room. The "artist", no liberation is needed . . . and if
Of the few of these which have already visit gave him 'an astonishing feeling of in a drawing say of Urbino Court of
come into print, three, for whatever quiet and repose', as he sat afterwards in a Honour I can achieve this aliveness, then
reason, have become part of the mind- pavement-café. we are with another free bird ?'
furniture of his devotees, or some of `The thing I remembered most was the Faced with the best of these new
them. In a letter he wrote to John feeling of light in his room and the pauses interactions of line and oil wash, isn't it
Summerson twenty-six years ago, he and silences during and after he'd been again Nicholson's freedom we find so
remembered coming on a cubist Picasso talking. The feeling in his studio must astonishing ? Of course what he makes is
in the Rosenberg gallery in Paris, in the have been not unlike the feeling in one evidently of this century. But using the
early twenties, and he recalled as well his of those caves where lions used to go to seen object he strips it of its incrustation
first visit to Mondrian's studio near the have thorns taken out of their paws.' of being too familiar: he has seen it, and
Gare Montparnasse. That I have never forgotten, only he draws it, in his line, in his relationships,
In the centre of the Picasso 'there was wishing I had used my own eyes to as if he were the first and only man,
an absolutely miraculous green -- very better effect. observing it with an eye unconnected by
deep, very potent and absolutely real — in The third perception, again both nerve-lines to the memory of how it may
fact none of the actual events in one's actual and applied, is from a letter have been seen by others. With
life have been more real than that.' written in 1967 to Maurice de Sausmarez: Nicholson the 'objects' have been hedges,
Then Mondrian's studio. My own `We have a smallish very dark-leaved jugs, fireworks, fruit, playing-cards,
recollection, going there in the thirties, prickly holly tree with red berries in it on doorways, pillars, monoliths, moons,
on Nicholson's advice (Brancusi one day, our rather large terrace and there's a goblets, scissors, rectangles and related
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