Clarinet Player

Gordon Davies masterfully depicts a young man playing a clarinet, his unkempt hair, grey jumper and red tie give the impression he is a school student. Davies pays particular attention to the pose- elbows out, dexterous fingers in motion and pursed lips- details that skillfully capture the sense we have caught the youth off-guard and mid-piece. Davies has set the youth in front of a window, lighting the scene from behind to further emphasise pose, the dark tones evocative of Rembrant. 

Gordon Davies (1926 – 2007)

Born in London in 1926, Davies served in the army during World War II in the Highland Light Infantry before studying art at Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts in 1948 and the Royal College of Art 1950-53. He taught drawing part-time at Canterbury College of Art and regularly exhibited at the Royal Academy following his time at the Royal Collage of Art, as well as solo shows across a number of British galleries, including a retrospective at the Royal Museum and Art Gallery, Canterbury in 1990.

Davies’ artistic talents were not limited to painting. He was also a distinguished designer for Sanderson’s wallpapers, a muralist, an illustrator for Profile Publications, a cartoonist for The Eagle and ceramicist.