£375
Abstract composition, spheres and cones
Unmounted (ref: 10964)
Mixed media with scratching out
Provenance: The Artist's Estate
After gaining a Travelling Scholarship to Rome, in 1929, Finney returned to London to
embark on his career – but in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash he considered
himself "lucky in obtaining a part-time teaching post at Chelsea School of Art under
P. H. Jowett (1882-1955). This teaching post enabled me to have contact with a few of
the personalities, who were ultimately to make a name for themselves in the world of
the visual arts. Henry Moore (1898-1986) was in charge of the sculpture department
and Graham Sutherland (1903-1980) of the department of design. After I had been
there a year, Jowett resigned his post to become principal of the Royal College of Art. A
most versatile personality took his place, H.S.Williamson (1892-1978) a considerable
musician, as well as an able and vital painter". An accomplished musician himself,
Finney believed that music, along with art, had the power to elevate its audience.
One of Finney's rare excursions into pure abstraction is entitled: Visual Responses
to Beethoven's Pastoral.
