Provenance:

Private Collection since 1995

Colin McCahon database no. cm000349

Near Craigieburn no. 4 belongs to a series of works by McCahon where he sought to depict the Cantabrian landscape through expressions of textured, painterly dynamicity.

Contained within a modest square form, this work possesses a powerful, meditative potency. The yellowed hues of the landforms imbue the painting with an almost ethereal sense of sepia-toned timelessness, while at the same time offering something of a geographically non-specific, sublime abstraction. Thus, the painting's form, colour and painted texture bear witness to a certain universal truth as interpreted by McCahon.

McCahon's depictions of the distinctive northwest region of Canterbury, Craigieburn, represent an interesting moment in his artistic production. These works were accomplished in 1969 - having recently transformed an industrial shed in Muriwai into his studio, McCahon was at this time immersed in a complex, intersemiotic exploration of his spirituality and artistic identity. This included the articulation of a number of his key ideas and philosophical explorations through a large series of text-based religious works. Near Craigieburn no. 4 is an accomplished work which offers a glimpse into the artist's spiritual relationship and dialogue with the landscape at this seminal point in his career.