BUCKLAND, KEN (1921-2005)

"Blue Horizon" (1970)
acrylic mixed media
122.6 x 91.5cm
signed lower right
*private collection, Sydney
 
Buckland is a forgotten, award-winning British-Australian Mid Century Painter.
He was born in London, where he studied at the acclaimed Harrow School Of Art & Ealing School of Art. After starting his professional career as a commercial artist, he relocated to Sydney in 1961, becoming a respected abstract artist. Buckland's oeuvre was deeply entrenched in the teachings of the St Ives School; the predominant English abstract art movement of the 1950s & 1960s. He was also heavily inspired by Tachisme, a movement in opposition to the abstract Expressionist movement, popularized by Europeans such as Jean Debuffet & Pierre Soulages. With this eclectic background, Buckland became known for his textured paintings depicting rugged Australian landscapes, in an aesthetic similar to contemporary, Fred Williams. He exhibited widely featuring in regional shows such as the Mosman Art Prize & Woollahra Gallery in Sydney, the Toorak Gallery in Melbourne, and the Contemporary Art Society, Sydney. In 1968, he was the winner of the Sun Herald Art Contest at the International Air Terminal.