Drying the Nets, c.1920
signed lower right
EXHIBITED:
The Fine Art Society Ltd, London, 1971
In Drying the Nets, Hunter turns away from the harbour to a quieter scene: fishing nets hanging beside cottages beneath an expansive east coast sky. Beneath the apparent simplicity of the scene lies a composition of remarkable subtlety.
The first sensation is one of movement. Broad sweeps of blue-grey cloud press dramatically across the sky, suggesting strong coastal wind moving in from the sea. The entire composition seems animated by this invisible force. The hanging nets sway heavily beside the house, nothing is perfectly straight or horizontal and even the loose grasses and fencing appear shaped by the salt air and exposed conditions of the coast. Hunter structures the composition with great intelligence, preventing the composition from becoming static or picturesque.
About George Leslie Hunter
Born in Rothesay in 1877, George Leslie Hunter emigrated to California in 1892 where his father bought a farm. He spent all his time drawing and when his family came back to Scotland in 1900 he remained in California and became part of the Bohemian lifestyle of San Francisco. He earned money by acquiring illustration work for newspapers and magazines. He went to New York with friends and then on to Paris in 1904, working in each city for a few months.
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