Pallant House Gallery in Chichester was a delight. Graham Sutherland's Deposition is a focus work for my study and Dean Walter Hussey commissioned several works by the artist. Hussey's art collection was bequeathed to the Pallant and we found two religious works and one landscape on display today. A gallery label informed us that another painting was to be found in Chichester Cathedral just a few streets away.
Sutherland's religious work is challenging and has been controversial in the past. In particular his Crucifixion paintings with their visual reference to images from concentration camps published after World War II are harrowing. The very helpful Cathedral guide told us the their painting Noli Me Tangere was the subject of a knife attack in the early days and later suffered graffiti on the frame.
The day was a joy and more than made up for a disappointing visit to Southampton Art Gallery two days ago. The gallery there is undergoing building works, half the rooms were closed and nothing of relevance to my study is currently on display. At the Pallant we enjoyed an excellent lunch - the restaurant is small so booking a table was essential - and appreciated the setting of the paintings in both the original Queen Anne townhouse and the contemporary extension. Good to be back on tour.
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