About this artwork
This etching was for Bellany’s second wife, Juliet. However, the same year it was made Juliet died. The following year, Bellany created another etching, this time titled ‘Capercaillie Sings its Lament’ a melancholic lament over Juliet’s death. The contrast between the two is striking. This work is jovial with the artist depicting himself as a capercaillie playing the piano, with a glass of wine and cigarette perched on top. The panel down the right hand side, a device Bellany was employing in his paintings, shows a portrait of Juliet. This etching belongs to a series of prints that principally belong to the period from 1982-6. It demonstrates a bolder, more definitive line than his earlier etchings.
Updated before 2020
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artist:John Bellany (1942 - 2013) Scottish
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title:Capercaillie Sings his Love Song
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date created:1985
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materials:Etching on paper (5/25)
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measurements:16.80 x 24.50 cm (paper 31.50 x 45.00 cm)
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object type:
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credit line:Purchased 1986
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accession number:GMA 2997
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gallery:
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subject:
John Bellany
John Bellany
Bellany was born in the fishing village of Port Seton, near Edinburgh. He studied at Edinburgh College of Art and at the Royal College of Art, London. His work of the 1960s and 1970s dealt with original sin, guilt, sex and death. His characteristic paintings are large compositions featuring his own...