signed lower right; signed and titled “Japonese Cloth” on the reverse; with accompanying letter from the artist
48 × 39.75 in (121.9 × 101.0 cm)
Auction Estimate:$15,000 - $20,000
Sale date:May 29, 2018
Price Realized
$17,700
(including Buyer's Premium)
Provenance
Private Collection, Victoria
Literature
A.K. Prakash, Independent Spirits: Early Canadian Women Artists, Toronto, 2008, page 31
A favourite subject for Bobak, the floral still lifes which the artist produced throughout her career mirror the whimsical beauty of chance floral arrangements. Taking inspiration from her own garden, Bobak often chose a variety of blooms to arrange loosely, emphasizing the organic nature of the flowers. Highlighted by the loose and free brushstrokes, the flowers curve gently and wistfully with the weight of the blooms dictating the chance arrangement.
In a letter from the artist to her friend, Joan, dated October 2, 1998, Bobak remarks on “Japanese Cloth”: “The cloth is (or was) an old memory from home in B.C.—I had 2 of them—this one in the painting, long since missing. I do wish I could have been more like dear Charles Comfort who documented everything he did—but it wasn’t in my nature...It is a lovely painting though— flowers from our garden, of course”. Personal tokens are incorporated into this work adding an element of intimacy with the artist; it is as if the viewer is privy to a snapshot of the artist’s home and a personal moment in time.
