An atmospheric British Modernist oil painting by Hans Hedley, dated 1964, with an intriguing connection to the Edinburgh Festival.
A bridge stretches across a wooded ravine, its pale structure emerging from an extraordinary landscape of slate blue, smoky green and grey. Hedley handles the paint with confidence, building layers of texture through expressive brushwork and passages of scraped and worked pigment.
There is an appealing tension between abstraction and representation. The landscape is recognisable, yet the forms almost dissolve into colour and movement. The light falling across the bridge draws the eye through the composition, giving the painting an unusual sense of depth and atmosphere.
The history is particularly interesting.
The reverse bears handwritten inscriptions identifying the artist as Hans Hedley, the title The Bridge, the number 27 and Edin Festival 1964.
These markings suggest a connection with Edinburgh's 1964 Festival exhibitions, although the precise exhibition and venue remain unconfirmed. The number 27 may represent an exhibition catalogue number or an earlier inventory reference.
About the artist
Hans Hedley is an artist whose work has largely escaped conventional published reference sources. Little reliable biographical information is currently available.
Another painting attributed to Hedley, High Wilderness, an oil on board measuring 68 × 90 cm, appeared at the Cotswold Auction Company in Cheltenham in November 2014. A further work, Kestrel, dated 1976, was catalogued at auction in Canada in 2019.
The Bridge is a compelling example of mid-20th-century landscape painting, combining expressive handling, an unusually beautiful palette and an intriguing piece of British exhibition history.
Inscribed verso 'HANS HEDLEY', 'THE BRIDGE', 'NO. 27' and 'EDIN FESTIVAL 1964'. Artist signed bottom right.
Oil on board.
Max Width - 87cm / 34”
Max Height - 72cm / 28.5"
Good condition overall.
Framed in a painted wooden frame with blue-grey inner detailing.
