An Artist's Collection: Ivon Hitchens brings together seven paintings held in a private collection since the late 1970s. Painted between 1942 and 1978, they trace Hitchens' career from his early wartime landscapes in Sussex to the brilliant colour and greater freedom of his late work. Presented together exclusively at House 50, Burlington Arcade, after nearly fifty years in private hands, this exceptional collection offers a rare opportunity to consider the breadth of Hitchens' oeuvre, and to make a part of this remarkable history one's own.
The collection’s particular significance lies in the discerning eye of its owner, the landscape artist Kenneth Webb, whom Gladwell & Patterson have had the honour of representing for many decades. Kenneth had admired Hitchens’ work since his student years, and its influence became particularly evident in his paintings of the mid-1970s. The two first met at Hitchens’ eightieth birthday party in 1973, forming a firm friendship sustained by regular meetings and a shared enthusiasm for the possibilities of painting. Their artistic exchange extended beyond admiration: Kenneth introduced Hitchens to the experimental possibilities of acrylic paints, adding a further dimension to the creative bond that gives this collection its distinctive character.
