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Black and yellow by Dorothy Johnstone.
Black and Yellow
Black and yellow by Dorothy Johnstone.
Black and yellow by Dorothy Johnstone.

Black and Yellow

Artist (Edinburgh, Scotland, 1892 - 1980)
Date1920
Mediumoil on canvas
ClassificationsPaintings And Drawings
DimensionsOverall: Height: 81.5 cm, Width: 65 cm
Frame: Height: 95 cm, Width: 78.6 cm
AcquisitionPurchased in 1983 with assistance from the National Fund for Acquisitions.
Copyright© Permission by courtesy of Dr D. A. Sutherland and Lady J. E. Sutherland
LocationOn Display - Gallery 14
Object numberABDAG000688
About MeDorothy Johnstone was born in Edinburgh, the daughter of the artist George Johnstone and Jessie Heron. At the age of 16 in 1908 she became a student at the Edinburgh College of Art, studying drawing and painting. She graduated in 1912, showing such promise that she was given the use of a studio at the college. In the same year she had her first work exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy and the following year exhibited one of her finest early works, a painting of her sister entitled "Marguerite". In 1914 she became a member of staff at the Edinburgh College of Art.

The year before this painting was executed, Dorothy Johnstone, Mary Newbery and Cecile Walton joined the reconstituted 'Edinburgh Group'. Their 1920 exhibition was particularly successful. It was said that "people look to the Edinburgh Group to something unique rather than universal; for something of pagan brashness rather than parlour painting".

This picture was painted at the Greengate close, with friend and fellow artist Dorothy Nesbitt as the model. It shows that a female nude standing next to the bath tub in a simplified style. The roundness of the female figure is contrast with the various geometrical forms such as a square rug on the floor and the window consists of rectangular segments. The theme of bathing women, which may have been suggested by the work of Degas, was popular with the Bloomsbury artists such as Duncan Grant and Vanessa Bell in the year of 1910 - the year in which the exhibition, Manet and the Post-Impressionists organised by Roger Fry opened at the Grafton Galleries in London.

As in previous generations, it remained common practice for young students artists to act as models for themselves and each other. This was partly a process of self-discovery and partly an economic necessity. Few artists could afford to pay for substantial use of a professional model. It became more common for artists to act professionally as models.

More About Me
The artist painted her friend Dorothy Nesbitt in this piece; have you ever worked with a friend?
Exhibitions