Major Colin McCahon painting to be sold at auction

Major Colin McCahon painting to be sold at auction in Sydney

Deutscher and Hackett Important Australian + International Fine Art Auction
17 November 2010

I Applied My Mind, 1980-82
Pre auction estimate A$800,000 – 1,200,000

Deutscher and Hackett has been selected to handle the sale of I Applied My Mind 1980–82, one of the most significant works by New Zealand’s greatest twentieth century artist, Colin McCahon.

With an estimate of A$800,000 – 1,200,000, the painting which measures 195.0 x 180.0 cm is one of two profound works by McCahon to be offered in the auction, the other being from his deeply metaphorical Noughts and Crosses series of 1976 (estimate A$250,000 – 300,000).

I Applied My Mind 1980-82, was one of McCahon’s final masterpieces. It is a work, using his direct technique of white text on black ground, which addresses the key issues that consumed McCahon towards to end of his life. Drawing upon texts from the book of Ecclesiastes, McCahon created a work of astounding visual strength, which has been likened to gazing into the depths to contemplate the nature of life itself.

The painting was acquired by the current owners in 1983 at the Peter McLeavey Gallery in Wellington, and in 1991 it was lent to the National Gallery of Australia to be exhibited as a foil to a major McCahon work from their collection, Victory over Death. Prior to its return to the owner’s family in 2008, the painting has been included in numerous international exhibitions and is included in all the authoritative publications on McCahon’s work.

One of only four works in the artist’s final series, I Applied My Mind, is seen as the companion work to Is There Anything Of Which One Can Say Look This Is New?, currently held in the collection of the Bank of New Zealand. Thousands of people have been moved by this extraordinary painting, now offered for sale for the first time since its initial exhibition.

In August 2009, Deutscher and Hackett achieved the world record auction result for a Colin McCahon painting, Let Be, Let Be, 1959, which was the first painting by the artist to sell for over NZ$1 million at auction. The work was purchased by New Zealand art dealer, John Gow, on behalf of a private New Zealand collector for AU$942,000 including buyers premium.

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