Memorial in High Wood by David Holt (1997)
An original painting in bespoke frame, a sombre painting inspired by a visit to the Somme battlefields
Author
Publisher
Printing Details
Painted in 1997, this is an oil on canvas in a bespoke wooden frame (it is not glazed). The frame has been washed with a subtle a red colour to the fore-edge, the inner boards with a washed-out red. The frame measures 64 × 53cm, with the painting measuring 41 × 31cm.
Signed, titled and dated by David Holt to the reverse.
Titled 'Memorial in High Wood', this is a deeply moving piece of quiet, solemn intensity. Painted after a visit to the Somme battlefields and based loosely on the 1st Battalion Cameron Highlanders Memorial at High Wood. The memorial is pitched in darkness with the stillness of the Somme at night surrounding it, the only bright colour coming from memorial crosses and Remembrance poppies below and flecks and lines of red signifying the high price paid by those who fought.
Provenance: This painting comes directly from the artist's estate, and the work is offered with full provenance.
David Holt (1928–2014). Born in Hythe, Kent. Painter and Lecturer in Art. After National Service, he trained at the Canterbury School of Art, the Hammersmith School of Art and the Royal Academy Schools where he was awarded a medal for drawing and the Knapping Prize. He joined a studio-workshop with Gerald Holtom (designer of the CND symbol) in 1958 where he designed and produced proscenium curtains for schools. In 1958 he was awarded a Harkness Fellowship and travelled across America, producing many drawings and prints of the Pueblo Indians and their life-dance in Santa Fe in New Mexico, where he also worked with artist Agnes Sims. He returned to England in 1960 and continued to paint and work on large textile appliques for schools, churches, and private houses including Spade House in Kent, the former home of H G Wells.
He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 1962, and in 1964 was commissioned to design and make a large textile applique 'Christ in Majesty' which still hangs in the chapel of Christ Church College in Canterbury.
He was Head of Art at Canterbury Christ Church University until his retirement in 1995. He exhibited widely in the UK and the States and worked with many art societies and summer schools across East Kent.
His work can be found in both private and public collections throughout the UK and America, including the Yale Centre for British Art. His painting "Coastal Watcher" was recently used for the dustwrapper on Modernism and Memory: Rhoda Pritzker and the Art of Collecting (Yale University Press, 2016).
Condition
The painting is in very good condition. The frame has a few small knocks to the outer edge but remains in good order. There are a few flecks of white paint to the inner section of the frame, this is intended by the artist.
I am happy to post overseas but please email first so we can find the most competitive rates. Collection is available from Hythe (CT21) but please allow 24 hrs notice.[Location: Store]
As of July 2026, books remain duty-free. The price of the book incurs no extra US import fees.
Price
£70.00
