Provenance: Private collection
As a neo-Romantic painter, Leet was an exact contemporary of Carel Weight, with whom as a young man he shared a studio. He experimented with Surrealism, and was part of the tempera revival within Britain. Leet also served as official war artist in New Delhi, and it is tempting to see this still-life as a melding of his Surrealist tendencies with the Indian light and colour that he witnessed.
Exhibited: Sanctuary, Artist-Gardeners, 1919-39, Garden Museum, London, 25th February – 5 April, 2020
Literature: Christopher Woodward, Sanctuary: Artist-Gardeners, 1919–1939, published by Liss Llewellyn, 2020