Eric Ravilious
Interior at Furlongs By Eric Ravilious
The soft bright light of the South Downs floods through an open door into a room that could hardly be plainer. The brick floor is uncovered, the walls undecorated, but red curtains hang at the window and the brightness of the countryside beyond fills the room with life. An overcoat hanging behind the open door and a bentwood chair in front of the window give the painting a mysterious, even dreamlike quality. The cottage shown is Furlongs and was rented by Ravilious’s friend Peggy Angus and became a hive of artistic activity throughout the 1930’s. When Eric’s wife Tirzah visited the cottage she brought marbling apparatus and sheets of Michallet paper, and set about making colourful patterned wallpaper. Paintings by Angus and her guests hung on the walls, illuminated at night by oil lamps. With a fire of sticks and branches gathered from the woods, the small sitting room became a cosy retreat after a day of outdoor painting in springtime. Edition size limited to 500 copies. Image size 40 × 50 cm, paper 57 × 67 cm.
