David Bomberg

David Bomberg (1890-1925)

Last year I went to see the David Bomberg Exhibition at the Laing Gallery, Newcastle. Bomberg was an innovator, seeking new ways of working and expression, right through from the early days of Cubism. He played with form, light and colour and produced inspiring works about “place” from a number of travels overseas, including Palestine and Spain. Since the exhibition, I have also read MacDougall and Dickson’s Bomberg (2017).

 An example of his good use of tone to capture form and mood is Mount Zion with the Church of the Dormition, 1923, below. The picture is strikingly simple and effective, and executed with energy using strong, fluid brushstrokes.

David Bomberg, Mount Zion with the Church of the Dormition, 1923, oil on canvas, Ben Uri Gallery

I have looked closely at the way Bomberg portrays colour and light. The light in his Palestinian and Spanish landscapes is totally different, but effective in each. For instance, take Bomberg’s ambitious painting, Jerusalem, City and Mount of Ascension, 1925 - the light bounces off the buildings and really gives off the feel of intense heat:

“Here colour itself has become an integral part of the painting’s structure and composition.” (MacDougall and Dickson, 2017 p. 111)

David Bomberg, Jerusalem, City and Mount of Ascension, 1925 oil on canvas, Ferens Art Gallery

In contrast, we see a more colourful, and vibrant depiction of the Spanish light in the painting, The Gorge, Ronda, Spain, 1935:

“Bomberg spins the canvas to capture a breath-taking vertical view, in which the drama of the setting is matched by the gorgeous extravagance of his palette.” (MacDougall and Dickson, 2017 p. 139)

David Bomberg, The Gorge, Ronda, Spain, 1935, Middlesborough Institute of Modern Art