In 2007, Peter Doig (b. 1959) became a household name when his painting “White Canoe” sold for $11.3 million at auction, setting the record at the time for the highest auction price by a living European artist.

By the age of 50, Doig had major retrospectives at the Tate Britain, the Paris Museum of Modern Art, and the Montreal Museum of Fine Art.

Doig’s works draw inspiration and imagery from a variety of sources including photographs, art history, film stills, posters, and magazines as well as his own experiences living in Canada, the United Kingdom, and Trinidad.

Born in Edinburgh, he moved to Trinidad as an infant. (Doig's father worked for a shipping company) Some of his earliest memories are from the Caribbean island, including swimming in Maracas Bay, before the family was sent to Montreal in 1966. In 2002, Doig and his own family moved back to Trinidad, after a month-long artist residency. 

Like many of Doig's enigmatic images, this work is drawn from deeply personal memories and filtered through a dreamlike lens. Often Doig's works incorporate elements of figuration and landscape. Though thoroughly contemporary, they have a primitive on naif element to them. 

Otherworldly hues of tropical green saturate the atmosphere surrounding a pristine example of geometric architecture. The monument's thick black lines and mysterious emerald interior emerge from an ominous forest of wavy palm trees and reeds. There's mystery and tension in the juxtaposition, reflecting Doig’s imaginative and personal exploration of broader transcendental themes. 

Additional images available on request. 

Questions about this piece?  or call

"Maracas"

Trinidad, 2004

Colored aquatint on vellum 

Signed, dated, and numbered by the artist

From an edition of 120

11.5"H 8”W (image)

Publisher: Texte zur Kunst, Berlin

Very good condition