1930 - 2019
The Dance

Oil on board
Image size: 30 ¼ x 23 ½ inches
Gilt frame

Plummer specialised in the medium of egg tempera, a technique little used since the frescos of the Renaissance, he often worked on a large scale, but in tremendous detail, combining Classical iconography and formal composition with visual exploration evocative of William Blake and Stanley Spencer. His principle focus is the depiction of the human form, he was featured doing just this in a wonderful Pathe short film, An Artist in Eggs (1958), which can be found on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wd9fBoi5_cI) .  Be sure to look out for one of the paintings in our exhibition on the wall of Plummer’s studio.  

Plummer was instrumental in the rediscovery in the twentieth century of using egg tempera in art, finding that the method of painting successive layers and the resulting translucency were ideal in portraying the subtleties of skin tone and physical detail.

Francis Plummer exhibited widely during his lifetime at venues including the Leicester Galleries, Leighton House Galleries and the Alwyn Gallery in Mayfair in 1975.