Victor Hume Moody (1896-1990)

"Victor Moody’s distinctive voice has yet to find a large, enthusiastic and appreciative public. He is not alone. He is in good company with other British artists from the period, whose work is strikingly recognizable and yet at the same time almost permanently out of vogue: Robert Weir Allen, Harry Morley, William Strang, Charles Sims, Charles Shannon, Ambrose McEvoy, Stanley Lewis, Albert Victor Wood. All displayed remarkable technical skill - grounded in a profound and thorough training in draughtsmanship, combined with acutely observed narratives. They are infused with humour and idiosyncrasy. While the skill might be beyond dispute, the subject matter and composition can make the work inaccessible to a modern day audience. There is a sense of melodrama, a distortion of beauty, a heightening of colour which unsettles. Most viewers are drawn to conclude, sometimes reluctantly, more often readily, that the work produced