Circle Art Auction 2015 Lot 11 Geraldine Robarts

Geraldine Robarts (Kenyan, born 1939)
Tree of Life, 1987
Signed ‘Geraldine Robarts 1987’ (lower right)
Edition 10/20 linocut, but only 10 were made
63 x 57 cm

Ksh 75,000-90,000
(US$ 680-820)
Sold Ksh 140,880

Provenance: direct from the artist

Geraldine Robarts was born in London but spent her childhood in South Africa where she completed her degree in fine art at the University of Witwatersrand. In 1963 she moved to Kampala where she spent nine years. During this time, alongside her own practice, she was a lecturer in fine art at Makerere University where she taught the Ugandan artist Theresa Musoke. Along with many artists, Robarts and her family left Kampala under Idi Amin’s regime and moved to Nairobi, Kenya, where she took citizenship.

This print, made by the artist nearly thirty years ago, is an interpretation of the cycle of life: the leaves tell the story from birth to adulthood, then decay back to the earth to begin nourishing the tree again.

Robarts has exhibited worldwide, including Kenya, China, Canada, Germany, South Africa and the USA. Her work is included in both institutional and private collections.