Tunis, 1919. The war is over. The light here has no memory of it.
The Bay of Tunis, Morning looks across calm turquoise waters toward the distant outline of Mount Bou Kornine — painted from the Moorish palace of Dar Ennejma Ezzahra, where Lavery was a guest. The composition is spare and luminous: horizon, water, soft tonal gradations that dissolve into each other with perfect restraint. There is no drama here. That is the point.
Lavery understood that the Mediterranean had a particular quality of morning light that Europe could not offer — and he painted it with the attention it deserved.
Sir John Lavery (1856–1941) was born in Belfast, trained in Glasgow and Paris, and became one of the most celebrated painters of his era. His work is held in the National Gallery of Ireland, the Tate, and major collections worldwide.
Archival giclée print on 250gsm fine-art matte paper. Printed to order. Free worldwide shipping.
