Despite its aesthetic refinement, ‘Three Oranges’ is rich with narrative. In it, a girl sits atop an antique throne, her three Cabbage Patch dolls nestled below, an orange offering in each of their laps. On the rug before her, a miniature dervish dances and, atop a nearby table, a dark figurine watches. With outstretched feet, the girl fixes her gaze on the dark figure, shielding her dolls from its glare.

This scene is redolent of a child’s mind, where an entire universe can be enacted from the living room floor. It also bears traces of the artist’s life, in particular his travels to Turkey and the Middle East where he most likely collected the dervish, the Bedouin and the rug.

Like the best of interior scenes in art, ‘Three Oranges’ is peppered with clues to orientate the viewer. Backing the scene, is a bay window filled with seascape. Interestingly, the studio where Dunlop first created this image was girt by garden not by sea. Thus, the water’s presence is not realistic but an artistic decision, the results of which create a dramatic juxtaposition. Domesticity is cast against the ocean, refinement meets ruggedness.

‘Three Oranges’ is at once an exercise in artistic prowess and a meditation on a childhood spent in quiet rapture. Lit by an eternal sun, this work will illuminate collections of figurative art, interior scenes and important Australian art.


Brian DUNLOP (1938 - 2009)
'Three Oranges'
archival pigment print on paper
Edition of 250
Image Size: 75 x 56 cm
Dimensions: 90 x 68 cm
Signed: Bears a facsimile of the artist’s signature and a studio stamp from the Estate of the Artist lower right; inscribed with edition number and title in pencil in margin below image.
Comes with Letter of Provenance
Availability: in stock
Condition: As New
© The Artist or Assignee