Upwey Landscape II 1965

  

oil on canvas 182.0 x 146.0 cm
(Collection: Australian National Gallery)

    
      Here Williams returns to solidity of form in his work, perhaps to counterbalance the ariness of the You Yangs series. The inclusion of verticals in the tree trunks and the strong horizontal of the horizon line anchor the work compositionally and pictorially.Yet there is an animated touch at work here, which is reminiscent of the You Yangs paintings (and the Australian landscape series to come): the foliage appears almost to dance on the painting surface. These works were the result of an exhausting creative burst for Williams, yet their execution became progressively studio-bound as the series neared completion.    
             

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