Artwork Information

David Gommon secured a solo exhibition at the Wertheim Gallery at the age of 19. Despite such early success, he became disillusioned and abandoned painting for a long period, not holding his second solo exhibition until 1959.

This sensitive portrait of his mother does not seek to idealise her. Wearing an apron, her shirt sleeves pushed up, it is as if she has stopped to pose between her domestic activities. Her attire and pose is reminiscent of New Zealand artist Robin White’s iconic portrait of her mother in Florence and Harbour Cone, 1974. (Intimate Portraits, 2005)