1907
1907 Flowers for the Woman
2017 SOLD for £ 48M including premium
The greatest artists express their vision of the world. Klimt goes further : he wants to change the life.
The Klimt and Flöge families are closely linked. Gustav Klimt becomes the brother-in-law of Helene Flöge in 1891 and her tutor in the following year. Helene and her sister Emilie open a business of couture and fashion in Vienna in 1904. Emilie was Gustav's companion from 1891 until the artist's death in 1918.
The Schwestern Flöge workshop is experimenting with new garments for the Viennese avant-garde, including loose dresses hung from the shoulders without using a corset. The very famous blouses of Gustav Klimt, which give him such a neglected attitude according to the conceptions of today's fashion, proceed from the same trend.
The shape of the garment is not enough : women also deserve a shimmering decoration. Gustav observes trees and flowers as patterns of texture. Their bright colors were created by nature. Gustav does not cancel the shapes of the flowers. If he had, he would have been the first abstract artist.
Gustav reveals the woman's head as the only realistic element in his portraits. The body is hidden by an ample garment whose limits loosely overlap the background of the image and whose details are luxurious and colorful. Adele Bloch-Bauer I, oil on canvas 138 x 138 cm painted in 1907, was sold for $ 135M on June 18, 2006 in a private sale by Christie's to Ronald Lauder.
On March 1 in London, Sotheby's sells as lot 11 Bauerngarten, oil on canvas 110 x 110 cm painted in 1907 during the holidays of Gustav at the Attersee. Poppies, daisies and zinnias spread their colors in an endless meadow with no horizon. These flowers are dominated by a triangle of roses that confirms the artist's intention for the design of a dress.
Please watch the very short video shared by Sotheby's.
The Klimt and Flöge families are closely linked. Gustav Klimt becomes the brother-in-law of Helene Flöge in 1891 and her tutor in the following year. Helene and her sister Emilie open a business of couture and fashion in Vienna in 1904. Emilie was Gustav's companion from 1891 until the artist's death in 1918.
The Schwestern Flöge workshop is experimenting with new garments for the Viennese avant-garde, including loose dresses hung from the shoulders without using a corset. The very famous blouses of Gustav Klimt, which give him such a neglected attitude according to the conceptions of today's fashion, proceed from the same trend.
The shape of the garment is not enough : women also deserve a shimmering decoration. Gustav observes trees and flowers as patterns of texture. Their bright colors were created by nature. Gustav does not cancel the shapes of the flowers. If he had, he would have been the first abstract artist.
Gustav reveals the woman's head as the only realistic element in his portraits. The body is hidden by an ample garment whose limits loosely overlap the background of the image and whose details are luxurious and colorful. Adele Bloch-Bauer I, oil on canvas 138 x 138 cm painted in 1907, was sold for $ 135M on June 18, 2006 in a private sale by Christie's to Ronald Lauder.
On March 1 in London, Sotheby's sells as lot 11 Bauerngarten, oil on canvas 110 x 110 cm painted in 1907 during the holidays of Gustav at the Attersee. Poppies, daisies and zinnias spread their colors in an endless meadow with no horizon. These flowers are dominated by a triangle of roses that confirms the artist's intention for the design of a dress.
Please watch the very short video shared by Sotheby's.
The New York Times Thinks Sotheby’s Is Getting Frisky with Its Klimt https://t.co/3mgODvO8HY pic.twitter.com/etX2peYay3
— Art Market Monitor (@artmarket) February 24, 2017
1907 Nymphéas by MONET
1
W1698
2022 SOLD for $ 56M by Christie's
In 1907 the continuation of the Nymphéas series by Monet brings a major breakthrough in modern art. The hues become lighter and ethereal. The accuracy of the brush lines is superseded by the confrontation of rare colors, paving the way to the abstract expressionism four decades later. The horticulture is now secondary to the atmosphere and light.
Monet applies in 1907 his signature practice of repeating the same views by varying time of the day, weather and season. The Wildenstein references W1695 to W1700 and W1703 to W1717 are such groups.
On May 12, 2022, Christie's sold for $ 56M from a lower estimate of $ 35M a 94 x 89 cm oil on canvas painted in 1907 in pastel like hues, lot 12C, reference Wildenstein 1698. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Between the groups of floating flowers, the mirror image of the trees and sky at the surface of the water provides another pre-abstract element. The wide open blossoms had been captured in the morning or early afternoon.
This opus was included in the seminal exhibition of 48 Nymphéas by Durand-Ruel in 1909.
Its nearly square format certainly predates the bold transition to vertical format in the same year, which would be a nonsense if the painting were a mere scenery. A vertical oil on canvas 100 x 81 cm was sold for $ 27M by Christie's on May 6, 2014.
Monet applies in 1907 his signature practice of repeating the same views by varying time of the day, weather and season. The Wildenstein references W1695 to W1700 and W1703 to W1717 are such groups.
On May 12, 2022, Christie's sold for $ 56M from a lower estimate of $ 35M a 94 x 89 cm oil on canvas painted in 1907 in pastel like hues, lot 12C, reference Wildenstein 1698. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Between the groups of floating flowers, the mirror image of the trees and sky at the surface of the water provides another pre-abstract element. The wide open blossoms had been captured in the morning or early afternoon.
This opus was included in the seminal exhibition of 48 Nymphéas by Durand-Ruel in 1909.
Its nearly square format certainly predates the bold transition to vertical format in the same year, which would be a nonsense if the painting were a mere scenery. A vertical oil on canvas 100 x 81 cm was sold for $ 27M by Christie's on May 6, 2014.
2
W1707
2014 SOLD for $ 27M by Christie's
In 1893, when Claude Monet obtains the administrative authorization to create a pond in his garden at Giverny, he already knows that it will be a laboratory for his artistic creation. He was then interested in the reflections in the water of the tall trees and of the Japanese bridge.
Monet is an amateur but careful and skilled horticulturist. Without having his original preference, the water lilies impose themselves as his most prolific theme, up to obsession. Unlike the ivy on the wall, they will not cover the entire available surface. Spreading their leaves flush with water, they materialize in perspective the real surface of the pond.
From 1904 to 1908, Monet produced his first series of Nymphéas. With more than 60 paintings which he wants all different from one another, the artist expresses the most subtle variations of color and light, changing the distance and population of the flowers, the importance of the reflections from the trees and the expressive power of color.
The horizon disappears, the details become abstract but the botanical accuracy remains. One of the first trials in this new figurative style, dated 1904, 81 x 100 cm, was sold for £ 18.5 million including premium by Sotheby's on 19 June 2007.
A beautiful fleet of well colored water lilies dated 1905, 90 x 100 cm, was sold for $ 44 million including premium at Christie's on November 7, 2012.
A particularly poetic oil version in pastel tones dated 1906, 90 x 100 cm, was sold for $ 20.9M by Christie's on May 8, 2000.
An oil on canvas 100 x 80 cm painted in 1907 comes in the following of that trend with soft shades more highlighting the reflections than the botany. It includes an innovation of Monet from that year : he realized that he was no longer a painter of landscapes and experienced the vertical format.
This painting was sold for $ 27M by Christie's on May 6, 2014, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Monet is an amateur but careful and skilled horticulturist. Without having his original preference, the water lilies impose themselves as his most prolific theme, up to obsession. Unlike the ivy on the wall, they will not cover the entire available surface. Spreading their leaves flush with water, they materialize in perspective the real surface of the pond.
From 1904 to 1908, Monet produced his first series of Nymphéas. With more than 60 paintings which he wants all different from one another, the artist expresses the most subtle variations of color and light, changing the distance and population of the flowers, the importance of the reflections from the trees and the expressive power of color.
The horizon disappears, the details become abstract but the botanical accuracy remains. One of the first trials in this new figurative style, dated 1904, 81 x 100 cm, was sold for £ 18.5 million including premium by Sotheby's on 19 June 2007.
A beautiful fleet of well colored water lilies dated 1905, 90 x 100 cm, was sold for $ 44 million including premium at Christie's on November 7, 2012.
A particularly poetic oil version in pastel tones dated 1906, 90 x 100 cm, was sold for $ 20.9M by Christie's on May 8, 2000.
An oil on canvas 100 x 80 cm painted in 1907 comes in the following of that trend with soft shades more highlighting the reflections than the botany. It includes an innovation of Monet from that year : he realized that he was no longer a painter of landscapes and experienced the vertical format.
This painting was sold for $ 27M by Christie's on May 6, 2014, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
3
W1708 Temps gris
2022 SOLD for £ 30M by Christie's
W1707, oil on canvas 100 x 81 cm, was sold for $ 27M by Christie's on May 6, 2014, lot 8.
Nymphéas, temps gris, oil on canvas 100 x 73 cm painted by Monet in 1907, is the next Wildenstein opus, W1708. It features the pond, the flowers and the reflections of the foliage in poor weather, highlighting the thunderous reflection of the sky between the floating groups of water lilies. Monet will not reuse this dramatic effect in the next series of Nymphéas.
W1708 was featured in the seminal exhibition of the Nymphéas by Durand-Ruel in 1909. It was sold by Christie's for $ 11.2M on May 2, 2006, lot 11 coming at that time from the family of Aristotle Onassis, and for £ 30M on June 28, 2022, lot 38. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Nymphéas, temps gris, oil on canvas 100 x 73 cm painted by Monet in 1907, is the next Wildenstein opus, W1708. It features the pond, the flowers and the reflections of the foliage in poor weather, highlighting the thunderous reflection of the sky between the floating groups of water lilies. Monet will not reuse this dramatic effect in the next series of Nymphéas.
W1708 was featured in the seminal exhibition of the Nymphéas by Durand-Ruel in 1909. It was sold by Christie's for $ 11.2M on May 2, 2006, lot 11 coming at that time from the family of Aristotle Onassis, and for £ 30M on June 28, 2022, lot 38. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1907 Peonies in Collioure
2012 SOLD for $ 19M by Christie's
In 1905, two young painters dazzled by the light of Collioure open a new path in art. They are named Henri Matisse and André Derain. Since then, color supersedes drawing as the dominant element in the composition of a painting.
These new colorists immediately seek to vary the subjects, and flowers are suitable for their research. The vases, tablecloths and wallpapers complement unprecedented color balances.
On May 1, 2012, Christie's sold for $ 19M from a lower estimate of $ 8M an oil on canvas, 65 x 55 cm, painted by Matisse in Collioure in 1907. Please watch these peonies in the video prepared by Christie's.This work showing a vase with peonies was admired by Félix Féneon who was the effective promoter of Fauvism.
These new colorists immediately seek to vary the subjects, and flowers are suitable for their research. The vases, tablecloths and wallpapers complement unprecedented color balances.
On May 1, 2012, Christie's sold for $ 19M from a lower estimate of $ 8M an oil on canvas, 65 x 55 cm, painted by Matisse in Collioure in 1907. Please watch these peonies in the video prepared by Christie's.This work showing a vase with peonies was admired by Félix Féneon who was the effective promoter of Fauvism.
1907 The Light of the Golden Horn
2019 SOLD for $ 16.2M including premium
Passionate about sailing, Paul Signac immerses himself in the atmosphere of the ports. In the spring of 1907, for visiting Constantinople, he made an exception to his practice by traveling by train. He probably feared for the safety of a private boat in this military port.
Signac had seen Venice in 1905. Yet it is in Constantinople that he integrates the extreme conjunctions of light and mist of Turner's Mediterranean masterpieces. He concentrates his sketches on the Golden Horn and its minarets that go up to the sky.
Back in France, Signac wants to express this dazzle. He takes a canvas in standard '50', 89 x 116 cm, which is the largest size compatible with the painstaking of his pointillist technique. After a month of effort, surprised by the unusual difficulty of this work, he scraps a first painting and starts again from scratch.
The second version is satisfactory. Signac retrieved the pleasure of expressing a great sun, as in Saint-Tropez fifteen years earlier, but this time he replaces the blinding yellow by a subtle palette of pinks and purples. Even better : he renounces for this view to a strict division between the color dots, accepting a blending inspired by Turner's art.
This painting is by far the most achieved of the nine or ten oils on canvas of Constantinople painted by Signac in 1907. In 1937, two years after his death, it was bought at auction by his daughter and her husband. It was sold for £ 8.8M including premium by Christie's on February 7, 2012. It is estimated $ 14M for sale by Sotheby's in New York on November 12, lot 21.
Signac had seen Venice in 1905. Yet it is in Constantinople that he integrates the extreme conjunctions of light and mist of Turner's Mediterranean masterpieces. He concentrates his sketches on the Golden Horn and its minarets that go up to the sky.
Back in France, Signac wants to express this dazzle. He takes a canvas in standard '50', 89 x 116 cm, which is the largest size compatible with the painstaking of his pointillist technique. After a month of effort, surprised by the unusual difficulty of this work, he scraps a first painting and starts again from scratch.
The second version is satisfactory. Signac retrieved the pleasure of expressing a great sun, as in Saint-Tropez fifteen years earlier, but this time he replaces the blinding yellow by a subtle palette of pinks and purples. Even better : he renounces for this view to a strict division between the color dots, accepting a blending inspired by Turner's art.
This painting is by far the most achieved of the nine or ten oils on canvas of Constantinople painted by Signac in 1907. In 1937, two years after his death, it was bought at auction by his daughter and her husband. It was sold for £ 8.8M including premium by Christie's on February 7, 2012. It is estimated $ 14M for sale by Sotheby's in New York on November 12, lot 21.
1907 The Fauvist Enthusiasm of Georges Braque
2013 SOLD 16 M$ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
The Fauvist revolution of 1905 is due to the enthusiastic response of very young artists. Besides Matisse, most of them are less than thirty years old. Their invention of the primacy of color over all other elements of the painting opens up a new language.
Georges Braque was excited by the Salle des Fauves. Like many others, he sought inspiration in the shining light of the hills of Provence. More than the others, he painted his feeling in front of the landscape rather than the landscape itself.
The twisted trunks of olive trees are an excuse to get rid of verticality. An oil on canvas painted in 1907, 38 x 46 cm, perhaps inspired by the art of Van Gogh, was sold for £ 5.1 million including premium by Sotheby's on 8 February 2012.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells a view of the countryside near La Ciotat, also painted in 1907. This oil on canvas, 51 x 62 cm, is estimated $ 10M. Here is the link to the catalog.
The artwork is located, but the landscape is barely recognizable. Provence is more strongly evoked by the colors in thelight than by the mountainous horizon and the indefinable trees.
This synthesis of Cézanne's texture and Derain's light relies on well balanced shapes, close to a child's drawing. Later, cubism will reveal the appeal of geometry to Braque. He could have been one of the great inventors of modern art but his Fauvist pulse was too short. The place was still left open for the theories of Kandinsky in Murnau in 1909.
POST SALE COMMENT
The Fauvist landscapes by Braque are very rare, and the composition of this one is of high originality. It deserved $ 16 million including premium.
The Fauvist revolution of 1905 is due to the enthusiastic response of very young artists. Besides Matisse, most of them are less than thirty years old. Their invention of the primacy of color over all other elements of the painting opens up a new language.
Georges Braque was excited by the Salle des Fauves. Like many others, he sought inspiration in the shining light of the hills of Provence. More than the others, he painted his feeling in front of the landscape rather than the landscape itself.
The twisted trunks of olive trees are an excuse to get rid of verticality. An oil on canvas painted in 1907, 38 x 46 cm, perhaps inspired by the art of Van Gogh, was sold for £ 5.1 million including premium by Sotheby's on 8 February 2012.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells a view of the countryside near La Ciotat, also painted in 1907. This oil on canvas, 51 x 62 cm, is estimated $ 10M. Here is the link to the catalog.
The artwork is located, but the landscape is barely recognizable. Provence is more strongly evoked by the colors in thelight than by the mountainous horizon and the indefinable trees.
This synthesis of Cézanne's texture and Derain's light relies on well balanced shapes, close to a child's drawing. Later, cubism will reveal the appeal of geometry to Braque. He could have been one of the great inventors of modern art but his Fauvist pulse was too short. The place was still left open for the theories of Kandinsky in Murnau in 1909.
POST SALE COMMENT
The Fauvist landscapes by Braque are very rare, and the composition of this one is of high originality. It deserved $ 16 million including premium.
1907 Nu Jaune, art on paper by Picasso
2005 SOLD for $ 13.7M including premium by Sotheby's
Link to catalogue.
1907 The Fauvist Horn
2020 SOLD for £ 7.6M including premium
Paul Signac had been beside Seurat one of the inventors of pointillism, or divisionism, a new way of painting based on the revelation of a hue by the juxtaposition of its complementary colors. He is also much involved in the circles of artists. Co-founder in 1884 of the Société des Artistes Indépendants, he will be its president from 1909 to 1934.
Henri Matisse was a member of this Société since 1901. In July 1904, the Matisse family is visiting Signac in his Saint-Tropez home. Matisse is not interested in the physiological theories of colors, and the two artists quarrel. After that stay, their mutual influence will become fertile.
With Luxe, Calme et Volupté painted in the fall of 1904 and acquired by Signac, Matisse tries the pure colors of the rainbow with a divisionist touch. The views of the Golden Horn painted by Signac in 1907 after his stay in Constantinople display similar Fauvist principles while adding in several works his signature search for an extreme brightness.
The masterpiece of Signac's series of the Golden Horn is an oil on canvas 89 x 116 cm which was acquired again by his family after his death and was sold for $ 16.2M including premium by Sotheby's on November 12, 2019.
On February 4 in London, Sotheby's sells a view of the Golden Horn by Signac, recently returned by the French government to the heirs of a collector despoiled in 1940. A model example by its confrontation of the pink and purple morning mist with the bright colors of boats and lodges, this oil on canvas 73 x 92 cm had been selected by the artist in 1908 to be exhibited at the Salon des Indépendants. It is estimated £ 5M, lot 12.
Here are two results including premium on other oils on canvas from the same series : £ 6.2M by Christie's on June 20, 2012 (73 x 93 cm), $ 4.7M by Sotheby's on November 7, 2007 (81 x 66 cm with a different composition, centered on a tall ship), A 73 x 92 cm view painted in 1909 was sold for £ 4.8M including premium by Christie's on June 18, 2007.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
Henri Matisse was a member of this Société since 1901. In July 1904, the Matisse family is visiting Signac in his Saint-Tropez home. Matisse is not interested in the physiological theories of colors, and the two artists quarrel. After that stay, their mutual influence will become fertile.
With Luxe, Calme et Volupté painted in the fall of 1904 and acquired by Signac, Matisse tries the pure colors of the rainbow with a divisionist touch. The views of the Golden Horn painted by Signac in 1907 after his stay in Constantinople display similar Fauvist principles while adding in several works his signature search for an extreme brightness.
The masterpiece of Signac's series of the Golden Horn is an oil on canvas 89 x 116 cm which was acquired again by his family after his death and was sold for $ 16.2M including premium by Sotheby's on November 12, 2019.
On February 4 in London, Sotheby's sells a view of the Golden Horn by Signac, recently returned by the French government to the heirs of a collector despoiled in 1940. A model example by its confrontation of the pink and purple morning mist with the bright colors of boats and lodges, this oil on canvas 73 x 92 cm had been selected by the artist in 1908 to be exhibited at the Salon des Indépendants. It is estimated £ 5M, lot 12.
Here are two results including premium on other oils on canvas from the same series : £ 6.2M by Christie's on June 20, 2012 (73 x 93 cm), $ 4.7M by Sotheby's on November 7, 2007 (81 x 66 cm with a different composition, centered on a tall ship), A 73 x 92 cm view painted in 1909 was sold for £ 4.8M including premium by Christie's on June 18, 2007.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
#AuctionUpdate⛵This large and wonderfully vivid work from Paul Signac’s series of views of Istanbul sails to £7,601,500. #SothebysImpMod pic.twitter.com/GLbNW39jgY
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) February 4, 2020
1907 Signac in Constantinople
2012 SOLD 6.2 M£ including premium
Around 1900, Paul Signac reuses pointillist techniques, but his style has changed, becoming more emotional. Socially engaged, he is naturally influenced by all modern trends but his art is profoundly original.
Landscape painter attracted by the sea, he was interested in maritime cities, including Venice in 1905. His colors became warmer. The post-Impressionist dots of Signac are precursors of the flat colors of Fauvism.
In spring 1907, he spent six weeks to soak up in the atmosphere of the Golden Horn in Constantinople at different times of the day. Back in France, he expressed his delight in a series of oil paintings. In the foreground, sea and boats symbolize the activity of the city.
The largest of these paintings, 89 x 116 cm, shows Constantinople in the extreme light of sunrise or sunset. It was sold £ 8.8 million including premium by Christie's on February 7, 2012.
A smaller painting, 73 x 93 cm, is estimated £ 4M, for sale by Christie's in London on June 20. The atmosphere is quieter. On the horizon, mosques and minarets mark their distance by lighter colors that enhance the mystical feeling of the scene.
POST SALE COMMENT
Very good price for this Signac, smaller than the painting of the same series that I took as reference. It was sold £ 6.2 million including premium.
Landscape painter attracted by the sea, he was interested in maritime cities, including Venice in 1905. His colors became warmer. The post-Impressionist dots of Signac are precursors of the flat colors of Fauvism.
In spring 1907, he spent six weeks to soak up in the atmosphere of the Golden Horn in Constantinople at different times of the day. Back in France, he expressed his delight in a series of oil paintings. In the foreground, sea and boats symbolize the activity of the city.
The largest of these paintings, 89 x 116 cm, shows Constantinople in the extreme light of sunrise or sunset. It was sold £ 8.8 million including premium by Christie's on February 7, 2012.
A smaller painting, 73 x 93 cm, is estimated £ 4M, for sale by Christie's in London on June 20. The atmosphere is quieter. On the horizon, mosques and minarets mark their distance by lighter colors that enhance the mystical feeling of the scene.
POST SALE COMMENT
Very good price for this Signac, smaller than the painting of the same series that I took as reference. It was sold £ 6.2 million including premium.
1907 Children playing with a Dog by Mary Cassatt
2007 SOLD for $ 6.2M including premium by Christie's
2018 SOLD for $ 4.8M including premium by Christie's
narrated in 2020 before the sale of another painting by Sothebys (see below)
A hypersensitive artist, Mary Cassatt stages scenes of intimate happiness between a young mother and children. Her stroke remains impressionniste. Hats and dresses are overflowing and colorful in the fashion of the Belle Epoque. Babies are too young to be disturbed by their full nudity.
These important series are families recomposed by the artist with models from her neighborhood. The little girl is often Sara, recognizable by her wide face and golden hair, which was very fashionable at that time. Mary was childless.
Children playing with a dog, oil on canvas 100 x 73 cm painted in 1907, has been sold twice by Christie's, for $ 6.2M including premium on May 24, 2007, lot 54, and for $ 4.8M including premium on November 11, 2018, lot 59A. The mother holds the baby and Sara holds the dog in the same delicate gesture, expressing by this image that the maternal instinct exists from childhood. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Children playing with a cat, oil on canvas 81 x 100 cm painted in 1908, was sold twice by Sotheby's, for $ 3.4M including premium on November 29, 2006 and for $ 2.2M including premium on December 11, 2020, lot 48.
As in the above example, it is interesting to compare the positions : the baby is on the mother's lap and the cat on Sara's lap. The baby, who had been intimidated by the dog, extends a hand over Sara's elbow to reach the cat's head.
These important series are families recomposed by the artist with models from her neighborhood. The little girl is often Sara, recognizable by her wide face and golden hair, which was very fashionable at that time. Mary was childless.
Children playing with a dog, oil on canvas 100 x 73 cm painted in 1907, has been sold twice by Christie's, for $ 6.2M including premium on May 24, 2007, lot 54, and for $ 4.8M including premium on November 11, 2018, lot 59A. The mother holds the baby and Sara holds the dog in the same delicate gesture, expressing by this image that the maternal instinct exists from childhood. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Children playing with a cat, oil on canvas 81 x 100 cm painted in 1908, was sold twice by Sotheby's, for $ 3.4M including premium on November 29, 2006 and for $ 2.2M including premium on December 11, 2020, lot 48.
As in the above example, it is interesting to compare the positions : the baby is on the mother's lap and the cat on Sara's lap. The baby, who had been intimidated by the dog, extends a hand over Sara's elbow to reach the cat's head.
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