Flower of Understanding by Ophelia Gordon Bell (1915 - 1975)

Ophelia Gordon Bell was born in London in 1915 but spent much of her childhood in the Lake District.  In her mid teens Ophelia was well on the way to becoming an accomplished artist in her own right, studying at Regent Street Polytechnic Sculpture School in London where she worked with stone, wood, metal, clay and plaster.  By the age of 23 Ophelia had already exhibited her work at the Royal Academy, the Royal Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts and the Society of Portrait Sculptors. 

In her later years Ophelia turned her attentions to the infinitely more pastoral and rural scenes that surrounded her: scenes that inspired her to craft her highly sought after sculptural studies of local shepherds with their sheep and farmers with their dogs.

William wrote at length about this painting in his autobiography, Mountain Painter and he also wrote a poem, inspired by the painting.  

"Soon after this Ophelia produced one of her all-too-rare paintings It was tall and narrow and at the base was a mound of earth in which could be seen rocks, stones, roots and insects. To each side were distant views, one of mountains, the other of seas, and above was flying a skein of wild geese in V formation.  All these spoke of things of the earth which she loved so strongly. Out of the centre of the earth and well rooted in it was a plant that grew tall and straight against the sky, which was golden below, with distant columns of showers. Then came storm clouds, dark, blue-black, from which flashed tongues of lightning.  All these illustrated the gleams and storm of childhood and youth. Then, above them, were the tops of great white cumulus clouds sailing across skies of palest turquoise that, higher up, became a warm cobalt blue, and, through it, curved high cirrus clouds of feathery white.  This denoted our emergence into the calmer ages of our lives, and the cirrus clouds led upwards. Against all this grew the tall plant with close fitting leaves, and, at its head, a beautiful white flower with star-like petals and a golden calyx, shaped rather like a crown with its stamen pointing to heaven."

The Flower of Understanding- poem

"Our genesis is in the Earth, (see the rocks, roots and creatures)

We experience earthly delights in sea, mountains, the flight of birds 

We grow through the storms of childhood, youth, adolescence, maturity; more calmly, emotionally, perhaps, as we learn wisdom. 

If we continue to grow straight towards what light we can see, we shall partake of the light

And the Source of all light will make of us something 

Of beauty and character. 

This can be the revelation for which we are created."

Inner Print Sizes:

• Framed - 360 x 633mm / 14.2 x 24.9 inches (Inner Print: 196 x 457mm / 7.7 x 18 inches).
  
• Mounted - 324 x 597mm / 12.8 x 23.5 inches (Inner Print: 196 x 457mm / 7.7 x 18 inches).

Notes:

• Frame & Canvas dimensions may vary slightly due to the slight variations frame width.
• Please allow +/- 5% on all measurements to allow for human error when measuring, rounding & conversions. For an exact measurement of your desired frame, please contact us.
• Loose Print sizes are the size of the inner picture. All loose prints come with an additional white border, ranging from 30mm to 85mm depending on the print size. This can easily be cut off with a ruler and knife.