Peter Lanyon was a Cornish painter whose production was grounded in his immediate surroundings; in his own words, “It is impossible for me to make a painting which has no reference to the very powerful environment in which I live”.
Equally, Lanyon navigated an original and important reappraisal of painterly Modernism. Early on, Lanyon earned the respect of Ben Nicholson and Barbara Hepworth, receiving twice-weekly tuition from the former. Equally, Russian artist Naum Gabo was a keen Constructivist influence on Lanyon’s early output, inspiring his ‘assemblages’ of found objects, which included rope, driftwood and sea glass. His work was therefore significant on an international scale.
After World War II, however, Lanyon rejected formalist concerns, replacing his abstracted visual language with a lyrical naturalism that was more overtly referential to the Cornish landscape. In part, this new, loose manner drew on the influence of the American Abstract Expressionists, among whom Lanyon had forged many strong friendships. In particular, Lanyon’s production was frequently likened to that of Willem de Kooning, thanks to its complex layering of paint.
Equally, Lanyon’s stylistic departure derived from his discovery of gliding, which became a regular pastime during the course of his later career. This hobby, which afforded him a birds’ eye perspective of the Cornish landscape, marked a notable shift in Lanyon’s method. Broad, more confident paint gestures characterise these later works, evoking the sensuous, exhilirating atmosphere of un-mechanised flight.
It is a cruelly ironic tragedy that, behind the bright colours of Lanyon’s later, joyful landscapes, lies a sinister reality: on 27th August 1964, Lanyon fatally crash-landed his glider near Honiton in Devon. He left behind some 600 works, as well as a lasting stylistic legacy.