Thorn Tree, Thorn Tree, 1978
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Gouache
23 ½ x 15 ½ in (60 x 39 cm)
Collections: Private Collection, Milan
The thorn tree is one of the most important themes in Sutherland’s art. It had been the spiky shapes of thorn bushes, evoking the cruelty of the Crown of Thorns, which inspired him at the end of the War, when he began thinking about religious subjects such as the Crucifixion and Christ carrying the Cross.
This work is one of the later variants of the motif, although the freshness and power of the drawing show no diminution in the artist’s enthusiasm for the subject. It is characteristic of Sutherland to set the tree against such a vivid and striking background.