A quiet man who preferred to operate outside the mainstream of Australian painting, Ray Crooke developed a deep affinity with the subjects he chose to paint, particularly the light patterns he would observe. He was fond of both the beach and the bush, appreciating the sense of space each environment offered.

Crooke was a truly original painter, ... though he has often been referred to as Australia’s Gauguin—a comparison he rejected. In an April 1970 article in The Australian Women’s Weekly, he was asked about the alleged Gauguin influence, and he explained, “I became more interested in what stimulated him; he was attracted to the early Italian Primitives, the Persians and the exotics. I sort of went through Gauguin to this source. But I’ve rejected Gauguin’s solutions.”

The only common ground between Gauguin and Crooke was their shared choice of subject matter: tropical islands and the people who inhabit them. However, while Gauguin’s Tahitian subjects are often posed, sun-drenched, and display the features of the sitters, Crooke was more focused on chiaroscuro and naturalness, maintaining the anonymity of his subjects. “Island Evening” is an excellent example of Crooke’s distinctive style of painting.