The sower 1944
oil on canvas
76.2 x 50.8 cm
oil on canvas
76.2 x 50.8 cm
I think that there was always the hope that it could influence the way people thought about war. That it could alert people to its horrors and prevent it occurring again. You see, I was born during the First World War in 1915, and my earliest experiences were with people who were in that war or remembered the war very vividly, and then, just when I was beginning to paint, the Second World War began. So war became a kind of lurking terror in my mind from infancy through to late adolescence, when it was all building up again for another one.
I had Millet’s Sower in mind when I painted it. This is a 20th-century ‘Sower’ and the dislocated limbs represent humanity out of gear, the bleak landscape represents the present period, whereas Millet’s landscape showed fertility.
James Gleeson, 1993
This Artwork showcases a load of different things. I can spot 2 skulls, A wolf face, a man's face, A woman's body, many cliffs and rocks and claws. The horrific and hideous manner of this painting depicts the pain and torment of James Gleeson and his feelings towards his experiences in the world war. The repetition of the rocky and rigid surfaces also indicate a very hard time. The overall aesthetic of this Painting makes me feel very overwhelmed with ugliness and sorrow. I find that the cliffs and the weather depicted in the background are very important in setting the mood of the piece, they bring the emotions to the fore front. Another important element is the man's face as it seems to be screaming and crying out a jagged piece of rock.
