PROVENANCE
Paul & Kerry Barber Collection National Treasures Art Auction International Art Centre 28/07/2000

By the mid-20th century, there was strong institutional fixation on emerging modernism and landscape art in New Zealand (particularly abstraction, with male artists such as McCahon leading the charge from the 1950s onwards). It is therefore not surprising that Anna Lois White found herself marginalised by the art world throughout her career. Despite the knowledge that her work did not align to institutional tastes or trends, White pursued an individual tradition of classically-inspired symbolism integrating allegorical, art historical, biblical and political concerns. In 1994, Auckland Art Gallery staged a large retrospective A Lois White - By the Waters of Babylon. This was the first time a national institution had acknowledged the importance and extent of her contribution to New Zealand art. In this sublime painting, four languid sleeping women are draped in arrangement around each other, surrounded by birds and a dog. The models are likely to have been the artist's friends.

The work emphasises the nature and distinctness of the subjects' femininity while offering a demystified, uncomplicated portrayal of the subconscious mind and feminine sexuality. It is theatrical but unpretentious, with a sense of psychological authenticity despite being set in a surreal dreamscape.