Provenance
Sheila Lanyon.James Coxson, 1995.
Austin/Desmond Fine Art, London, where purchased by the previous owner in 1998.
Exhibitions
New York, Catherine Viviano Gallery, Peter Lanyon, January - February 1962, no. 9.San Antonio, Marian Koogler McNay Art Institute, Paintings by Peter Lanyon, February - March 1963, catalogue not traced.
Bath, Bath Festival, Festival Gallery, St Ives Group 2nd Exhibition, June 1969, no. 45.
London, New Art Centre, Peter Lanyon, January - February 1975, no. 2.
Bournemouth, The Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum, Modern Artists Exhibition, January - February 1979, exhibition not numbered.
Paris, Artcurial, English Contrasts: Peintres et Sculpteurs Anglais 1950-1960, September - November 1984, exhibition not numbered, dated '1959'.
London, Arts Council of Great Britain, Serpentine Gallery, Recalling the Fifties: British Painting and Sculpture 1950-60, February - March 1985, catalogue not traced.
Edinburgh, Chessel Gallery, Peter Lanyon: Oils and Gouaches, February - March 1986, no. 1, dated '1959'.
London, Gimpel Fils, Scope: Abstraction from the 50s, June - September 1992, exhibition not numbered.
London, Austin/Desmond Fine Art, Aspects of Modern British Art 1910-1965, November - December 1998, p. 45, exhibition not numbered, illustrated.
Literature
D. Judd, 'In the Galleries: Peter Lanyon', Arts, Vol. 36, March 1962, p. 50, no. 6.I.H. Sandler, 'Reviews & Previews: Peter Lanyon', Art News, Vol. 61, 1962, p. 18, no. 1.
A. Causey, Peter Lanyon: His Painting, Henley-on-Thames, 1971, p. 63, no. 157.
M. Vaizey, 'Poetry in Landscape', Sunday Times, 19 January 1975.
W. Feaver, 'Peter Lanyon', Financial Times, 21 January 1975, illustrated.
Exhibition catalogue, Peter Lanyon: Later Work, Birmingham, Ikon Gallery, 1979, note. 22.
D. Hyatt, 'Space Equals Blue Speed Red Over Green: Some Aspects of the Work of Peter Lanyon', Contemporary Art, Spring 1993, Vol. 1, p. 19, no. 3, illustrated.
T. Treves and B. Wright, exhibition catalogue, Soaring Flight: Peter Lanyon's Gliding Paintings, London, Courtauld Gallery, 2015, p. 23, fig. 6.
T. Treves, Peter Lanyon: Catalogue Raisonné of the Oil Paintings and Three-Dimensional Works, London, 2018, p. 506, no. 490, illustrated.
Peter Lanyon's "Fly Away" (1961) exemplifies his original approach to landscape painting, merging his passion for gliding with his artistic vision. This canvas, captures the ethereal experience of soaring above the Cornish landscape, a perspective Lanyon embraced after learning to glide in 1959 and transcends traditional landscape representation by conveying the sensations of flight. The composition's ambiguity invites viewers to interpret its forms and colors, suggesting elements like dense clouds, stormy seas, or glimpses of land from above. This abstraction reflects Lanyon's intent to immerse the viewer in the physical experience of gliding, rather than depict a specific scene. ​
Critically acclaimed, "Fly Away" was featured in the Courtauld Gallery's 2015 exhibition "Soaring Flight: Peter Lanyon's Gliding Paintings," which highlighted works inspired by his aviation experiences.
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