Mother And Child

Harley Brown

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Canadian CAA, NAWA, NWR, OPA [b. 1939]

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MOTHER AND CHILD

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pastel on paper

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36.5 x 27.5 in. (92.7 x 69.9 cm)

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signed

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Provenance: This major work was commissioned directly from Harley Brown by the Calgary consignor, and it has been in the same collection since.

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Note: Harley Brown, born in Edmonton, Alberta, was encouraged to paint from a very young age by his father, who was an amateur artist. He began his formal training at the Alberta College of Art and Design (Calgary), supporting himself by playing piano in a night club, and by selling portraits door-to-door, in taverns, and on fair grounds. Brown was able to continue his studies at Camberwell School of Art in London, England. In 1966, he returned to Canada, having already started to gain a reputation as a Western artist.

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Harley Brown's break came during a trip to Montana, while he was beating the pavement trying to promote his work. He impressed Bob Brown, curator of the Montana Historical Society, who gave him a one-man show. This sold out show, followed by a gold medal award at a National Academy of Western Art Show, and several prominent commissions, gave momentum to his career. Harley Brown has been based in Tucson AZ for a number of years and has had a long and successful exhibition career. His works are in the collections of the C. M. Russell Museum (Great Falls), the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum (Oklahoma City), and the Gene Autry Museum (Los Angeles).

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In a gallery interview, Harley Brown once said: "In my own terms, I know my portrait is a success when I feel the heart beating within the portrait. At that point not another stroke. A successful commissioned portrait must have part of the subject and part of the artist within it."