Harold Town

Surprised Butler

1957

Harold Town remains one of the most accomplished and fascinating characters from the Painters Eleven group. While Town coined the group's name (based on the number of artists, who simply attended their first meeting) his output was diverse, ever-changing and not restricted to painting. Somewhat ironically, his first significant body of work, which established his reputation as a group of monotypes - which he called Single Autographic Prints. Town was introduced to lithography by fellow painters Eleven member Oscar Cahen. The Single Autographic Prints were first exhibited in 1954. Two years later the National Gallery of Canada would successfully nominate him to represent the nation at the Venice Biennale. By the end of the decade, Town received international accolades for these works and had become one of the most admired artists in Canada. This complex mauve-hued example of a Single Autographic Print is Harold Town at his best; layered, rich colors creating a hypnotic inimitable abstract surface. This type of SAP is particularly sought-after as it is one of the earliest and features a distinct graphic collage-like composition made up of blocky shapes. Such elements would become signatures in Town's oeuvre. An essential work for any collection of post-war Canadian abstraction.