Description
Island Life – Ray Austin Crooke
Gifted to Diana Crooke in 2006.
The inscribed message and year are written on the back of the painting in the artist’s hand.
The appealing loose style is classically Ray Crooke and from the later time in his career.
Ray Crooke’s landscapes depict island life in the tropical north and neighbouring Melanesian and Fijian Islands. These timeless and beautiful artworks capture the idyllic stillness and languid lifestyle of the tropics.
Crooke was principally known for his landscapes. He was also a skilled portrait painter and won the Archibald Prize in 1969 with a portrait of George Johnson.
In 1951 he married June Bethel, and the couple settled in Cairns before moving back to Thursday Island. Experience of life in the tropics became a key element of Crooke’s work. In 1959 he held a successful solo exhibition at Australian Galleries Melbourne. Now, highly sought after by major galleries, Cooke chose picturesque Yorkey’s Knob and Cairns as his base.
Ray Crooke’s work is in the Cairns Gallery, National Gallery of Australia, all other state and many regional galleries.
Original Oil Painting on Canvas
Varnished
50 x 40 cm
Signed by the Artist
Framed -condition good
2006
Price: $15,500.00
Artwork located in Cairns FNQ Australia. Delivery not included but will be arranged.
