The Entrance of Punch
, 1963
101.6 x 81.3 cm (h x w)
Oil on canvas
Alfred Cohen Art Foundation; gift of Michael and Jill Barrington
© Estate of Alfred Cohen 2020
Punch makes his spectacular entrance in a blaze of colour and vigour. But here too the grin is ambiguous. Is his truncheon raised in ecstatic celebration, as the audience applauds a favourite character? Or is it a weapon wielded with anger and menace?