Ceylon 1974 by Douglas MacDiarmid

However, peaceful as it appeared, the unhurried pace of village life, lush jungle and paddy fields hid both poverty and an ever-present undercurrent of violence that was to mar the country’s development for decades.

MacDiarmid has always been in the thrall of the human form. Catching sight of these lovely young women would have been enough to stop him in his tracks to unsuspectingly capture their grace and innocent charm. Those vibrant blush colours hint at the relentless tropical heat that would have driven his subjects to cool off.

And he has had the great good fortune to have visited many parts of the world in the days before mass tourism, package tours, at a time when travelling from country to country was a slow passage of days not hours. MacDiarmid’s travel diaries reflect an adventurous life, seeking out other cultures and antiquities off the beaten track as holiday destinations before they were inevitably ‘discovered’ and spoiled by progress.

The painting was given to his old university friend, the late New Zealand diplomat James Weir and his wife Mollie, decades ago and remains in the family. In what was probably its first public appearance, Ceylon VIIIA 3 was exhibited in Auckland during the Colours of a Life: The life and times of Douglas MacDiarmid book launch in July 2018.