A Heath pond, frozen in time

Published: 24 June 2010
by DAN CARRIER

WHEN there is a cold snap, Hampstead Heath Rangers are quick to head to the ponds and put up signs warning people not to venture on the ice. 

But back in the 1920s, wintry weather was greeted with joy – and sent artist Christopher Wood onto the Heath with his easel to catch images of skaters making the most of the frozen ponds.

Now, a painting by the celebrated British Modernist, who tragically killed himself when he was aged just 29, is up for sale for the first time in 55 years. 

The painting, called Skating At Hampstead, will be auctioned next week by Bonhams, and has caused quite a stir among collectors of modern British works.

While art experts know much about the painter, the whereabouts of the pond in the image is still shrouded in mystery: it could be either Whitestone Pond or The Vale of Health pond. What is known is that the painting will fetch around £70,000.

Bonhams’ director of Modern British Art, Matthew Bradbury, said the scene is “unusual” as Wood was known for his coastal scenes in Cornwall and Brittany. 

“The title is very specific, but no one is quite sure exactly where the pond is,” said Bradbury.

“Wood is generally regarded as one of the most important British artists working in the early part of the 20th century.”

And where the painting was hung immediately after it was completed is a mystery; the auction house know it has been in a private collection owned by a Yorkshire family since the mid-1950s, but before then its whereabouts are unknown. What is clear is that it is in need of some tender loving care. 

Mr Bradbury added: “We know the house it was hung in was home to people who smoked. It is very, very dirty, but will clean up beautifully and underneath lurks a simply amazing painting.”

A friend of Picasso and Jean Cocteau, Wood was feted in Paris and had begun to build a reputation at home. But his success did not lead to personal happiness: he killed himself at Salisbury train station, not long after completing the picture, apparently due to depression.

The sale is on June 30 at Bonhams’ Mayfair auction house.