Nature over again after Poussin
About this artwork
This work consists of eleven black and white photographs, each in halves, mounted separately in a hinged frame and accompanied by recorded flute music. The photographs depict the artist’s garden, Little Sparta, in the Pentland Hills outside Edinburgh. The title of the work refers to Cézanne’s desire to ‘paint Poussin over again after nature’ but Finlay has turned the concept of painting nature upside down by creating photographs of real landscapes as if ‘signed’ by famous artists. Representations of the signatures of artists including Corot, Guercino, Salvator Rosa and Poussin appear, each carved in stone. Finlay intended the work to question the status of the garden, which he felt should be an extension of the home.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Ian Hamilton Finlay (1925 - 2006) Scottish
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title:Nature over again after Poussin
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date created:1979 - 1980
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materials:Eleven black and white photographs, each in halves mounted separately on perspex; recorded flute music
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measurements:Each half print 49.50 x 29.20 cm
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object type:
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credit line:Purchased 1981
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accession number:GMA 2293
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gallery:
Ian Hamilton Finlay
Ian Hamilton Finlay
Finlay was born in the Bahamas to Scottish parents, who returned to Scotland when he was a child. He attended Glasgow School of Art for a brief period but began his career as a writer of 'concrete poetry'. Finlay's work investigates the power of images and symbols, particularly those associated...