Dux et Comes I 1932

Wadsworth began introducing more abstract forms into his nautical still lifes towards the end of the 1920s. In the following decade he made severa; abstract paintings, and in 1932 became a member of the Paris-based artist group Abstraction-Création. This painting belongs to a series called Dux et Comes, a musical term used to describe choral roles in a fugue. It translates from the Latin as ‘leader and companion’. The leader (soprano) sings in one key, the companion (alto) replies in another. Wadsworth’s works from this series explore human relationships and moods as indicated by subtitles, in this case ‘Rebuff’. Gallery label, September 2016