Even when he is not at his very best (and to be honest, I don't think he ever missed the mark) an Ian Cheyne print is always worth considering. I have to say A fisherman's church perhaps isn't one of my favourites. The waves are just a bit too frilly for my liking. All the same, it is a lovely and desirable thing and if you really want to see what a good printmaker can do with a few colours, you don't have to look any farther than the example that you see here. Cheyne knew his grey northern seas and it's interesting to compare Arabella Rankin's very considered approach to the Scottish coastline with the vivacious Ian Cheyne's take on the same subject. His prints almost always include some figures; I've not seen one by Rankin that does. Pigs, yes, aplenty, but human beings, no.
I have to thank an alert but anonymous reader who tipped me off about this rare occurence - I mean, a Cheyne actually coming on the market at all. If you compare it with the rather wonderful Sybil Andrew's print for sale at the same gallery at £9,750, the Cheyne doesn't seem so expensive at a tenth of the price. But Abbott & Holder in London are nowhere near as attractive price-wise as they used to be. That said, they have lots of nice things and the gallery in Museum St, if and when you are in London, is always worth a browse. I was very peeved to see a large linocut for sale there on my last visit that I had last seen on ebay. (There's a moral there but I try not to dwell on it). They also have Ethel Kirkpatrick at her most Irish and unearthly.
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