A WORK by the artist responsible for a 1960s concrete construction which has been dogged by years of controversy has been sold for £40,000 at a Tyneside auction.

Tyne and Wear Museums has bought the abstract artwork by Victor Pasmore, created from ready-made boards assembled together and painted.

Pasmore was head of painting at King’s College and later Newcastle University from 1953-61.

A large mural by Pasmore decorates Newcastle Civic Centre.

In 1955, he became consulting director of urban and architectural design for the south-west area of Peterlee New Town in County Durham, designing layout and architecture for the town, where his abstract sculptural Apollo Pavilion can be seen.

The pavilion was installed in the middle of a water feature in the Sunny Blunts area of the town in 1963. Residents protested that it was an eyesore and a magnet for vandals and teenage drinkers and local councillor Joan Maslin led a campaign to have the pavilion demolished.

The £40,000 48-inch square artwork was offered by Anderson & Garland’s Newcastle saleroom with an estimate of £15,000-£25,000.

It was created in 1959-60 by Pasmore as a gift for his friend Kenneth Rowntree, who became head of art at Newcastle when Pasmore left. Anderson & Garland will be selling the contents of Rowntree’s studio in September. The work has remained in the Rowntree family and this was the first time it had been offered for sale since it was created 50 years ago.

Anderson & Garland specialist Steven Moore said: “I am delighted that the Laing has secured this important work for the region.”

The Friends of the Laing Art Gallery gave £5,000 towards the purchase, with most of the rest of the cash coming from the Art Fund, which is the UK’s leading independent art charity, and the Museums and Libraries Association/ Victoria and Albert Purchase Grant Fund.

Sarah Richardson, keeper of fine art at Tyne and Wear Museums, said: “We are very pleased to acquire this work, which has very strong Newcastle connections and is from an important time in Pasmore’s career.

“He set up an influential course in art and design and was joined by pop artist Richard Hamilton which meant that Newcastle became an important centre in the British art world.”

The Pasmore work will go on show in a new exhibition planned for the Laing Art Gallery next year called Creative Spirit, which will feature the artists who have lived and worked in the Newcastle area.

The highest price paid for a Pasmore work was £48,000 in 2007 at a Bonham’s London auction.