Australian modernist Dorothy Braund pursued simplicity. It, in her own words, “knocked” her out – “There’s no chance for accidental effects. If you are simple everything has to relate and work”. This preoccupation led her to compose images more musical than visual, hymns about people, places and activities told with wit and humanity.

‘Dirty Dishes’ is an image of astonishing balance. Braund paints a precarious pile of dishes, each a different colour and form – an opportunity for the artist to execute her economy of simplicity, harmony and composition. In 1964, art critic Bernard Shaw described Braund’s work as lively, “linked with a shrewd and civilised eye for the bizarre and comical” – simple, does not always necessitate seriousness.

Scrawled on the back of ‘Dirty Dishes’ is a humorous annotation: “To refute Ken Clark’s definition of classical romantic”, Clark being the preeminent art historian. Braund was often jiving with the institutions of art history – accused of exhibiting art as a “joke” at the 1943 Contemporary Art Society.

Represented across state collections, Braund is an important part of Australian modernism. She was a member of George Bell’s School, the only woman to exhibit alongside Charles Blackman, Arthur Boyd and others in 1953 and as Shaw noted, “masterly in her own way”.

For collectors of modern art and work by women, she is a must.

Dorothy BRAUND (1926 - 2013)
'Dirty Dishes' 1975
oil on composition board
Image Size: 64 x 94 cm
Dimensions: 64 x 94 x 3 cm
Signed: Signed 'BRAUND '75' lower right
Comes with Letter of Provenance
 
Condition: Very Good: Describes a work of art's image as Excellent, but may show some small signs of surrounding wear to  frame. There are no disruptions to the paint's surface.
 
© The Artist or Assignee