George
Dannatt's involvement in this profession began some forty-five years
ago. George said '"Involvement' is used advisedly; painting becomes
part of living as is so clearly enunciated through Ben Nicholson's observation
"Abstract
art doesn't arise 'out of the blue' and has a vitality only when it
grows out of the painter's personal experience; it must start from something,
and this is what it starts from."
Dannatt
was a strong believer in influences and a constant experimenter in a
wide range of mediums, mediums which included collage and three-dimensional
constructions. In his earlier years his so-called geometrical work was
clearly derived from landscape, or from objects observed within a landscape;
but this source was then absorbed so that later drawings and paintings
tended to derive through a geometrical approach, though if the geometry
failed to promote a lyrical content in the completed painting, then
it is was not worth further consideration by Dannatt. Unusually, he
tended towards drawing after considerable experience of painting,
not the reverse. He was obsessive that paintings should possess an underlying
structure. Whilst Dannatt never 'translated' a photograph into a painting,
he used photography, preferring black and white, to record structure,
structure so evident in nature, especially in winter. His photographs
were generally backed by notebook sketches. Reference might be made
to his conversation with Professor Brandon Taylor (Professor of History
of Art and Design, Faculty of Arts, University of Southampton) entitled
Structure,
Rhythm and Space; which revealed much of his philosophy in the arts.
A selection
of work by George Dannatt is normally held by the London gallery, Osborne
Samuel of Bruton Street who represent Dannatt's work.