newlyn.info - from newlyn to newlyn in cornwall - Feisty female was ahead of her time

Dod Procter was a phenomenon. One of the best-known painters of her generation, since her death at the age of 82 in 1972 though, she has gone into relative obscurity.

In the 1920s she acquired instant fame through a painting called Morning, depicting a sleeping girl softly draped in night clothes. Voted Painting of the Year, and bought by the Daily Mail, it was gifted to the nation.

Dod's reputation was shaped on the strength of a series of paintings, portraits of naked adolescent girls, the candour of her art provoking some personal comment in the art fraternity, but the press hardly fired a sentence of censure - surprising in days when ladies on court at Wimbledon wore long skirts.

Alison Bevan, in her perceptive foreword to Alison James's new book, reflects: "Today, paedophilia hysteria and post-colonial sensitivities mean that her paintings of naked pubescent girls and portraits of the local children of her exotic holiday locations elicit reactions she would never have anticipated."

This well-written volume, punctuated with vintage Dod Procter pictures, in conjunction with a current exhibition, will surely reinstate her to the premier league of her genre.

Travelling through these pages, admiring the quality of the art and the words, you are reminded of LP Hartley's "the past is a foreign country; they do things differently there."

The subject though remains a paradox, Dod deliberately choosing a Christian name that masked her gender.

A contemporary described her as "being like a nymph. She had great charm, a keen sense of humour and was always ready for an adventure."

On her death, friend and fellow painter Alethea Garstin (who attributed Dod's death to gin) referred to her as "spontaneously witty" and noted her enjoyment of "books, poetry, of dress, good food, wine and company.

"Dod will dwell in the memory of friends and admirers as an artist in the all-too-rare and fullest sense. In her work she transmitted her vision and lively appreciation of things seen with consummate and individualistic craftsmanship."

She met her husband Ernest Procter when they were both students at the art school in Newlyn run by Stanhope Forbes and his wife Elizabeth. His sudden death on a train journey in 1935 affected her deeply, personally and as an artist. This book, like a Turner canvas, is on the grand scale, soaked in colour and character. Emerging from the 130 plus pages is a fascinating woman, a hint of the gypsy perhaps, and a versatile artist.

The fame, even the notoriety of her nudes - her erotic The Orchard, painted in 1934 is a superb example - must not overshadow her other pre-occupation, painting still lifes.

Covers sell books. Here the publishers have produced a riveting self-portrait: bob-style dark brown hair, face in profile, hawk-like eyes concentrating. Stanhope and Elizabeth Forbes would surely be proud of this publication, the spirit of Newlyn drifting through the chapters.