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William Fraser Sandercombe -Unique Original Painting - $260 (Markham)
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This original and unique work of art is by Canadian artist: William Fraser Sandercombe . The composition is inspired by the artist's own writing of horror and fantasy stories and Walt Disney's movies. Many of the allegorical images from these sources were carried over into this and other of his paintings. In addition, the composition is an expression of deeply personal events that the artist endured at the time, which are symbolically represented in the work. The various images in the painting flow from the fingertips of the outstretched hand of the wizard/sorcerer/magician seen in the upper left corner. A pretty blue eyed blonde young lady, in the right top corner, is watching (dreaming of?) these images. The sun is setting and the moon is rising - it is night. Bats and a flock of geese are flying, a nude winged fairy is in motion, a fox is running, the devil is peering over the mountain, and an axe with a bloodied blade is visible at the bottom left. The scene is surreal and spooky and has some of the hallmarks of a "Hitchcock" movie. The composition is very intriguing and is open to various interpretations and observations by the viewer. Some of the elements in the painting remind one of the Walt Disney, 1940 movie- "Fantasia" (e.g.: midnight, devil, mushrooms, fairy, etc.). It should also be mentioned that the tree at the bottom of the work resembles the Bonsai trees painted by American artist: Lester Parisch who trained the artist and inspired his painting.
I have communicated with the artist and the following is what he had to say about the painting:
"I do remember the painting, although somewhat vaguely. As I recall, all the images flowed from the hand of the wizard/sorcerer/magician in the upper left corner, the one with his hand outstretched and the suggested flow from his fingertips. It was actually painted in Toronto, with oils, and I was lucky enough to be invited to do a show in Montreal and that's where it sold. I don't remember the name of the gallery and all my records of everything from 1995 back were lost in a fire. As for the inspiration, I was into writing horror and fantasy at the time and many of the allegorical images from the stories carried over into my paintings. At the same time, it was deeply personal and symbolically represented some of the things I was going through at the time -- I don't really wish to elaborate on that. And it was definitely meant to be somewhat surreal. As for what was being celebrated, well, I don't actually remember why I called it that. I did three paintings in a similar format, each one a celebration. Perhaps that was just a generic term. After all, people were buying my paintings and I was beginning to make a living as an artist/writer without any government help, no grants, no handouts. I still celebrate that. I still occasionally return to the format used in Fantasia II -- although the style has evolved somewhat. If you were to go back to my website: http://www.wfsandercombe.com/ and take a look down the left side of the page, you'll see a painting of lady holding a star and walking towards a raven while watched by a teary eyed Madonna -- not the singer. That was done in the mid-90's".
As to the similarities of elements in this work to Walt Disney's 'Fantasia' and Lester Parisch's Bonsai trees here is what the artist had to say: "Fantasia was most definitely an influence. In fact, most of the Disney animated films were inspirational. I was pulled into the artwork, the amazing animation and the beautiful backgrounds, right from the start and am certain that it was those films that made me want to draw and later, to paint. And thanks for sending along that painting by Les. The influence on my own stuff is certainly there. As I looked at it, I remembered printing on the stretcher of Fantasia II. The person buying the painting asked me to put those details there. I also remember telling her I couldn't put my telephone number there because I was married. Luckily, she still bought the painting".
Details:
Title: Fantasia II -- A Celebration
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Size: 20"x16" image; 24.5"x20.5" framed
Date: September 1975, Montreal
Signature: Signed 'Fraser' lower left. Also signed, dated, and titled in pencil on the stretcher on verso.
Frame: Outer brown colored wood molding c/w egg shell colored liner and white inner fillet.
Provenance: The work was painted in Toronto, exhibited in a Montreal art gallery and sold by the gallery.
Asking Price: $260.00 OR BEST SERIOUS OFFER
About the Artist: William Fraser Sandercombe was born in Toronto. At the age of 17 he sold his first painting. One year later he published his first short story. Fraser has been an author, poet, painter, and musician ever since. He studied art in the early 1970's under American artist: Lester Parisch, in California. He prefers to illustrate his own books, sticking to hand inking and oil painting. His ability to shape vivid imagery from negative space makes his art stand out from the crowd. His main painting topic is fantasy. Fraser is also a prolific writer whose stories have appeared in Aphelion, Haunts, Macabre, Moonbroth, and Weirdbook. Fraser is a Beatles' scholar and has written several books on this topic e.g.: 'Beatle Books: From Genesis to Revolution' and 'Beatlemania Forever: The Beatles Encyclopedia'. In 1997 he established an on-line business selling rare, antiquarian and collectible books. Fraser has been painting for 40 years and lives and works in Burlington, Ontario. The following is what the artist communicated to me about himself: "In the early 70's, I studied painting in California with an artist named Les Parisch -- sort of an apprenticeship -- and for a short time after that, my stuff looked a lot like his but by the time your painting was done, I was exploring what I wanted to paint and moving away from what I had been taught. As for achievements, well, I never entered any contests and didn't really like the attitudes I encountered in artist groups -- one person actually had the nerve to tell me I had no business making a living as a painter because I didn't spend four years in art college the way he did. He went on to say how unfair it was that I was selling my stuff but no one wanted to buy any of his work. I asked him why that didn't tell him something. Anyway, I've been a painter for over forty years, have had a few major collectors and a number of sold out shows and never had to work for anyone else for more than three months at a time in all those years. And that's about it".
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