1924
1924 Tiefes Braun by Kandinsky
2022 SOLD for $ 23.3M by Christie's
Founded in 1919 by Gropius in Weimar, the Bauhaus first focused on a synthesis between art and crafts for an application to architecture. In keeping with the progress of that time, the technique is gradually taking the place of the craftsmanship.
The Bauhaus was the place to be for Wassily Kandinsky. Invited by Gropius, he joined that school in 1922 to reside as a Meister, teaching both the basics of design for beginners and the advanced theories.
Originally a painter of landscapes and epic improvisations, he now becomes the theoretician of abstract art, questioning the usefulness of figuration in art.
Kandinsky was throughout his career a theorist in search of the absolute art. At the time of the Blaue Reiter, the predominance of the colors and of the lines of force led him to abstraction, although he willfully ignored Malevich's Suprematism. In the Bauhaus he advances his theories by a detailed analysis of the basic forms : plane, straight line, angle, circle, semicircle, and of their relation with the colors. His own palette integrates additional colors.
Tiefes Braun was painted in 1924 by Kandinsky for his teaching. The arrangement of the figures assesses that he now integrates the Suprematism. This oil in canvas 83 x 73 cm was sold for $ 23.3M from a lower estimate of $ 10M by Christie's on November 9, 2022, lot 48.
The Bauhaus was the place to be for Wassily Kandinsky. Invited by Gropius, he joined that school in 1922 to reside as a Meister, teaching both the basics of design for beginners and the advanced theories.
Originally a painter of landscapes and epic improvisations, he now becomes the theoretician of abstract art, questioning the usefulness of figuration in art.
Kandinsky was throughout his career a theorist in search of the absolute art. At the time of the Blaue Reiter, the predominance of the colors and of the lines of force led him to abstraction, although he willfully ignored Malevich's Suprematism. In the Bauhaus he advances his theories by a detailed analysis of the basic forms : plane, straight line, angle, circle, semicircle, and of their relation with the colors. His own palette integrates additional colors.
Tiefes Braun was painted in 1924 by Kandinsky for his teaching. The arrangement of the figures assesses that he now integrates the Suprematism. This oil in canvas 83 x 73 cm was sold for $ 23.3M from a lower estimate of $ 10M by Christie's on November 9, 2022, lot 48.
1924 Henriette in the Studio
2014 SOLD 19.2 M$ including premium
After devoting his efforts to lead the avant-gardes, Matisse sought to develop an art altogether more emotional and more decorative. He needs a quieter life. He knows that he will meet this purpose in Nice, where he set up his studio permanently in 1921.
The war also had left its mark. This is the period of the come back of Matisse, Picasso, Derain, Vlaminck to classic styles. Matisse focuses on the theme of the timeless woman, in the nude and as an odalisque.
Picasso works mostly by imagination, but Matisse paints from nature. He gets as a model and assistant a young woman with perfect curves and proportions, Henriette Darricarrère, who works with him from 1920 to 1927. She loved music and art and Matisse encouraged her artistic talents.
This happy period of creation in the beautiful light of the Côte d' Azur has the effect of making the art of Matisse loved by the public who ever prefers simple drawings and bright colors and does not reject the use of visible geometric patterns.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells La séance du matin (the morning session), oil on canvas 74 x 61 cm painted in 1924, lot 8 of the catalog, estimated $ 20M.
Henriette busy to paint is dutifully sitting in front of another chair used as an easel. She turns her back to the window through which the clear blue of the sky and the bright blue of the Mediterranea can be seen. Her garment that is undoubtedly a night dress has vertical stripes that clash with the louvered window shutter, creating the strong point of the composition and drawing the attention to the character.
The war also had left its mark. This is the period of the come back of Matisse, Picasso, Derain, Vlaminck to classic styles. Matisse focuses on the theme of the timeless woman, in the nude and as an odalisque.
Picasso works mostly by imagination, but Matisse paints from nature. He gets as a model and assistant a young woman with perfect curves and proportions, Henriette Darricarrère, who works with him from 1920 to 1927. She loved music and art and Matisse encouraged her artistic talents.
This happy period of creation in the beautiful light of the Côte d' Azur has the effect of making the art of Matisse loved by the public who ever prefers simple drawings and bright colors and does not reject the use of visible geometric patterns.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells La séance du matin (the morning session), oil on canvas 74 x 61 cm painted in 1924, lot 8 of the catalog, estimated $ 20M.
Henriette busy to paint is dutifully sitting in front of another chair used as an easel. She turns her back to the window through which the clear blue of the sky and the bright blue of the Mediterranea can be seen. Her garment that is undoubtedly a night dress has vertical stripes that clash with the louvered window shutter, creating the strong point of the composition and drawing the attention to the character.
1918-1924 Le Pont Japonais by MONET
1
W 1921a
2014 SOLD for $ 15.8M by Sotheby's
The series of the Nymphéas was acclaimed by the connoisseurs and Claude Monet was already famous. In 1918, aged 78, he innovates once more by returning to the theme of the Japanese bridge. He did not need an addendum to his glory, and this confidential series was used to satisfy his desire to create.
These 24 oils on canvas made up to 1924 cannot be dated with accuracy, excepted one example sold in 1919 to Bernheim-Jeune. None other was exhibited in Monet's lifetime. He certainly reworked most of them in parallel, especially after 1923 when his cataract had been corrected by three surgery operations and a new pair of glasses, amending his vision of the colors. L'Allée de Rosiers is a series of 6 from the same period.
The curved bridge over the water lilies is an idea of the artist, inspired by Japanese prints and realized in 1893 in the development phase of the pond. Monet enjoyed to be photographed at this place of his garden and made an interesting series of 18 Impressionist paintings in 1899.
The art of Monet is a continuous learning of artistic creation that spans over half a century. In this last series of the Japanese Bridges, we find the subtle variations of light from a work to another, from flaming to night. There are also the loss of the horizon, as in the Nymphéas, or the sketch of a fading bridge like Waterloo's in London.
However, this series is not a synthesis but a new evolution, once again too ahead of its time to be understood by his contemporaries. The figurative line disappears almost completely in favor of the exploding colors.
The technique also is new. The material is thick, worked by the addition of new layers on still wet surfaces. The result of this sublime magma is an environment in which the viewer can be wrapped. These ultimate Japanese bridges by Monet merging sky, land and water anticipate Rothko's abstract expressionism by three decades with a practice of progressive mixing of colors that is close to what Richter will do much later.
A Pont Japonais from this series, oil on canvas 90 x 116 cm, was sold for $ 15.8M from a lower estimate of $ 12M by Sotheby's on May 7, 2014, lot 28. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Seen from afar, this work is a nice figurative sketch. Seen at any distance, it is a very good demonstration of the essential role of color in the expressionist art of the twentieth century.
These 24 oils on canvas made up to 1924 cannot be dated with accuracy, excepted one example sold in 1919 to Bernheim-Jeune. None other was exhibited in Monet's lifetime. He certainly reworked most of them in parallel, especially after 1923 when his cataract had been corrected by three surgery operations and a new pair of glasses, amending his vision of the colors. L'Allée de Rosiers is a series of 6 from the same period.
The curved bridge over the water lilies is an idea of the artist, inspired by Japanese prints and realized in 1893 in the development phase of the pond. Monet enjoyed to be photographed at this place of his garden and made an interesting series of 18 Impressionist paintings in 1899.
The art of Monet is a continuous learning of artistic creation that spans over half a century. In this last series of the Japanese Bridges, we find the subtle variations of light from a work to another, from flaming to night. There are also the loss of the horizon, as in the Nymphéas, or the sketch of a fading bridge like Waterloo's in London.
However, this series is not a synthesis but a new evolution, once again too ahead of its time to be understood by his contemporaries. The figurative line disappears almost completely in favor of the exploding colors.
The technique also is new. The material is thick, worked by the addition of new layers on still wet surfaces. The result of this sublime magma is an environment in which the viewer can be wrapped. These ultimate Japanese bridges by Monet merging sky, land and water anticipate Rothko's abstract expressionism by three decades with a practice of progressive mixing of colors that is close to what Richter will do much later.
A Pont Japonais from this series, oil on canvas 90 x 116 cm, was sold for $ 15.8M from a lower estimate of $ 12M by Sotheby's on May 7, 2014, lot 28. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Seen from afar, this work is a nice figurative sketch. Seen at any distance, it is a very good demonstration of the essential role of color in the expressionist art of the twentieth century.
2
W 1915
2019 SOLD for $ 12.8M by Christie's
A smaller Pont Japonais, oil on canvas 73 x 100 cm, was sold for $ 12.8M by Christie's on May 13, 2019, lot 36A. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The blue-green foliage with touches of violet interprets the early morning while a white mist had settled on the pond. Another viewpoint was operated for the afternoon views.
The blue-green foliage with touches of violet interprets the early morning while a white mist had settled on the pond. Another viewpoint was operated for the afternoon views.
1924 Au-dessus de la Ville by Chagall
2023 SOLD for $ 15.6M by Sotheby's
Marc Chagall and Bella fell in love in 1909 in their hometown Vitebsk. They parted from one another from 1910 when Marc moved to Paris and Bella was a student in Moscow. Back in Russia in 1914, they were re-united in a still intact deep love.
Au-dessus de la Ville, conceived in 1914, expresses in joyous colors their dreamlike bliss. Marc is gently holding his fiancée in a horizontal floating in the blue sky high above the Vitebsk cityscape. Her outstretched arm is leading the way to happiness. Breton was to acknowledge Chagall as a forerunner of surréalisme. This gouache, distemper, black crayon and paper 36 x 50 cm was sold for £ 1.8M by Sotheby's on June 22, 2011, lot 4.
The couple married in 1915. A very similar remake from that year in oil on board 48 x 70 cm was sold for $ 9.9M by Christie's on May 15, 1990.
A large size oil on canvas 140 x 200 cm is dated ca 1914-1918.
Marc and Bella moved from Moscow to France in 1923. In 1924 in Paris, Marc painted a brighter remake of Au-dessus de la ville. This oil on canvas 68 x 91 cm was sold for $ 15.6M from a lower estimate of $ 12M by Sotheby's on November 13, 2023, lot 5.
Au-dessus de la Ville, conceived in 1914, expresses in joyous colors their dreamlike bliss. Marc is gently holding his fiancée in a horizontal floating in the blue sky high above the Vitebsk cityscape. Her outstretched arm is leading the way to happiness. Breton was to acknowledge Chagall as a forerunner of surréalisme. This gouache, distemper, black crayon and paper 36 x 50 cm was sold for £ 1.8M by Sotheby's on June 22, 2011, lot 4.
The couple married in 1915. A very similar remake from that year in oil on board 48 x 70 cm was sold for $ 9.9M by Christie's on May 15, 1990.
A large size oil on canvas 140 x 200 cm is dated ca 1914-1918.
Marc and Bella moved from Moscow to France in 1923. In 1924 in Paris, Marc painted a brighter remake of Au-dessus de la ville. This oil on canvas 68 x 91 cm was sold for $ 15.6M from a lower estimate of $ 12M by Sotheby's on November 13, 2023, lot 5.
1924 Nude and Color by Matisse
2010 SOLD 15.1 M$ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
The main subject of the paintings by Matisse is the harmony of colors. Inspired by the interior design, he does not follow the way of Van Gogh, Gauguin or the Blaue Reiter. He assembles some themes where the observer does not contradict his choice of colors, such as fabrics, wallpaper or vases.
The buyer who paid € 36 million for a simple still life of flowers, 1911, 81 x 65 cm, had understood that the work of Matisse was one of the founding principles of the art of the twentieth century. This result was the highest price in the Yves Saint-Laurent sale, in February 2009 at Christie's.
The drawing of female nude was another specialty of the artist, also well-popularized in prints. The sharp and precise curves give life to the subject with great clarity.
Painted in 1924, a sitting nude with a blue cushion is a synthesis of all of this. The woman is well proportioned (which is not always the case in the works of this master) and the realistic color of the flesh is highlighting the background of the apartment. The model is caught in a moment of trust and relaxation, arms crossed above her head, one leg lifted.
This attractive and friendly oil on canvas, 72 x 58 cm, is estimated $ 20 million, for sale at Christie's in New York on May 4.
ADDENDUM
It is confirmed that there is a direct relationship between the arts of painting and of drawing in the work of Matisse! The black and white print entitled Nu au coussin bleu près d'une cheminée (Nude with blue cushion near a fireplace) had an almost identical drawing as that of our oil. A copy of this lithograph of 1925, image size 64 x 48 cm, was sold today, March 31, 54 K £ including premium at Christie's in London.
This information that I found by chance on the web reinforces my opinion about the importance of the painting which will go into auction on May 4.
POST SALE COMMENT
This painting has remained far below its estimate: it was sold $ 15.1 million including premium. It may have been disadvantaged by its small size.
The main subject of the paintings by Matisse is the harmony of colors. Inspired by the interior design, he does not follow the way of Van Gogh, Gauguin or the Blaue Reiter. He assembles some themes where the observer does not contradict his choice of colors, such as fabrics, wallpaper or vases.
The buyer who paid € 36 million for a simple still life of flowers, 1911, 81 x 65 cm, had understood that the work of Matisse was one of the founding principles of the art of the twentieth century. This result was the highest price in the Yves Saint-Laurent sale, in February 2009 at Christie's.
The drawing of female nude was another specialty of the artist, also well-popularized in prints. The sharp and precise curves give life to the subject with great clarity.
Painted in 1924, a sitting nude with a blue cushion is a synthesis of all of this. The woman is well proportioned (which is not always the case in the works of this master) and the realistic color of the flesh is highlighting the background of the apartment. The model is caught in a moment of trust and relaxation, arms crossed above her head, one leg lifted.
This attractive and friendly oil on canvas, 72 x 58 cm, is estimated $ 20 million, for sale at Christie's in New York on May 4.
ADDENDUM
It is confirmed that there is a direct relationship between the arts of painting and of drawing in the work of Matisse! The black and white print entitled Nu au coussin bleu près d'une cheminée (Nude with blue cushion near a fireplace) had an almost identical drawing as that of our oil. A copy of this lithograph of 1925, image size 64 x 48 cm, was sold today, March 31, 54 K £ including premium at Christie's in London.
This information that I found by chance on the web reinforces my opinion about the importance of the painting which will go into auction on May 4.
POST SALE COMMENT
This painting has remained far below its estimate: it was sold $ 15.1 million including premium. It may have been disadvantaged by its small size.
1924 Portrait de Mme K by Miro
2001 SOLD for $ 12.7M by Christie's
link to lot 14.
1924 Le Violon d'Ingres by Man Ray
2022 SOLD for $ 12.4M by Christie's
Le Violon d'Ingres, a surrealist photo conceived by Man Ray in 1924, has a striking impact by its simple geometry, glamorous display and intriguing title.
It features his model and lover Kiki de Montparnasse seated from the back. The head turned to her left is wearing a Turkish turban and an ear pendant. The voluptuous body in strong contrast with the black background is naked down to the draped hips.
Kiki is here performing the nude Grande Baigneuse by Ingres, later a central figure in le Bain Turc. The title of Man Ray's photo refers to the skill of Ingres for playing the violin, that became a French expression equivalent to the English 'hobby'.
The comparison of the female shape with a violin is reinforced by the fact that the arms are hidden and by the f-holes impressed on her back by reprocessing the original state with Man Ray's own rayograph technique.
The original print finished with the f-holes is a unique gelatin silver print 48.5 x 37.5 cm ink signed and dated 1924 by Man Ray. After being kept for half a century in the collection of its late owners, it was sold for $ 12.4M from a lower estimate of $ 5M by Christie's on May 14, 2022, lot 615.
For further prints the artist rephotographed the original rayogramme with a 5 x 7 inch camera. One of them was used by André Breton to illustrate his dada oriented Littérature magazine in 1924. A silver copy 31 x 25 cm that belonged to Breton was purchased in 1993 by Centre Pompidou.
It was to participate to the tattoo craze when young women had applied Man Ray's f-holes on their back.
It features his model and lover Kiki de Montparnasse seated from the back. The head turned to her left is wearing a Turkish turban and an ear pendant. The voluptuous body in strong contrast with the black background is naked down to the draped hips.
Kiki is here performing the nude Grande Baigneuse by Ingres, later a central figure in le Bain Turc. The title of Man Ray's photo refers to the skill of Ingres for playing the violin, that became a French expression equivalent to the English 'hobby'.
The comparison of the female shape with a violin is reinforced by the fact that the arms are hidden and by the f-holes impressed on her back by reprocessing the original state with Man Ray's own rayograph technique.
The original print finished with the f-holes is a unique gelatin silver print 48.5 x 37.5 cm ink signed and dated 1924 by Man Ray. After being kept for half a century in the collection of its late owners, it was sold for $ 12.4M from a lower estimate of $ 5M by Christie's on May 14, 2022, lot 615.
For further prints the artist rephotographed the original rayogramme with a 5 x 7 inch camera. One of them was used by André Breton to illustrate his dada oriented Littérature magazine in 1924. A silver copy 31 x 25 cm that belonged to Breton was purchased in 1993 by Centre Pompidou.
It was to participate to the tattoo craze when young women had applied Man Ray's f-holes on their back.
1924 Hispano-Suiza Tulipwood Torpedo
2022 SOLD for $ 9.2M by RM Sotheby's
A grandson of the founder of the highly successful Dubonnet aperitif firm, André Dubonnet was at 21 a flying ace of the First World War, credited with six aerial victories. After the war he developed his passion for innovative mechanics with Hispano-Suiza.
As early as 1921, Dubonnet won the first edition of the Coupe des voiturettes Georges Boillot with a Hispano-Suiza 6 cylinder 7 liter Spéciale prepared by himself.
Dubonnet commissioned in 1924 to Nieuport Aviation his unprecedented masterpiece, a featherweight tapered and lowered torpedo body suitable for both racing and touring assembled on a newly developed Hispano-Suiza H6C sport chassis with a new 6 cylinder 8 liter engine.
The frame of wooden ribs by Nieuport were covered with strips of mahogany of uneven thickness and length riveted to the veneer. The torpedo tail enclosed a 52-gallon gas tank for long distance racing. The car was nicknamed the Tulipwood Torpedo.
The body was then sealed, sanded and varnished. Dubonnet with his Tulipwood Torpedo finished 6th in the 1924 Targa Florio.
This one off car conceived and driven by an aperitif heir soon went into the ownership of the son of a famous perfumer and then to a Scottish marmalade heir. Largely retaining its original woodwork, it was sold for $ 9.2M by RM Sotheby's on August 18, 2022, lot 141.
It is narrated and operated in the video shared by the auction house. The images are shared by Wikimedia with attribution to Bill Abbott, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, (first image below) and to Chris Hunkeler from El Cerrito, California, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0> (second image below), via Wikimedia Commons.
Dubonnet switched in 1925 from Hispano-Suiza to a Bugatti Type 35. This man ahead of his time also competed in bobsleigh in the 1928 Olympics.
As early as 1921, Dubonnet won the first edition of the Coupe des voiturettes Georges Boillot with a Hispano-Suiza 6 cylinder 7 liter Spéciale prepared by himself.
Dubonnet commissioned in 1924 to Nieuport Aviation his unprecedented masterpiece, a featherweight tapered and lowered torpedo body suitable for both racing and touring assembled on a newly developed Hispano-Suiza H6C sport chassis with a new 6 cylinder 8 liter engine.
The frame of wooden ribs by Nieuport were covered with strips of mahogany of uneven thickness and length riveted to the veneer. The torpedo tail enclosed a 52-gallon gas tank for long distance racing. The car was nicknamed the Tulipwood Torpedo.
The body was then sealed, sanded and varnished. Dubonnet with his Tulipwood Torpedo finished 6th in the 1924 Targa Florio.
This one off car conceived and driven by an aperitif heir soon went into the ownership of the son of a famous perfumer and then to a Scottish marmalade heir. Largely retaining its original woodwork, it was sold for $ 9.2M by RM Sotheby's on August 18, 2022, lot 141.
It is narrated and operated in the video shared by the auction house. The images are shared by Wikimedia with attribution to Bill Abbott, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, (first image below) and to Chris Hunkeler from El Cerrito, California, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0> (second image below), via Wikimedia Commons.
Dubonnet switched in 1925 from Hispano-Suiza to a Bugatti Type 35. This man ahead of his time also competed in bobsleigh in the 1928 Olympics.
We can't wait to see the world famous Hispano-Suiza at our Monterey auction. The "Tulipwood" Torpedo is one of the crown jewels of the Masterworks of Design Collection: https://t.co/Qf7DUI4fu2 pic.twitter.com/V62ppN3UYM
— RM Sotheby's (@rmsothebys) June 23, 2022
1924 Le Boeuf écorché by Soutine
2006 SOLD for £ 7.8M by Christie's
Link to catalogue.
1924 Danseuse Espagnole by Miro
2001 SOLD for $ 8.9M by Christie's
link to lot 16.
1924 Le Piège by Miro
2021 SOLD for £ 5.3M by Christie's
Surrealism was the literary movement by which poets sought the automatic writing through the subconscious. At the end of 1923 Joan Miro transposes these conceptions to pictorial art. He approaches the Parisian surrealists in 1924, the very year when Breton writes the Manifeste du Surréalisme. He anticipates by a few years Picasso's commitment to surrealism and Dali's obsessions.
Miro already considers his work to be anti-art, at the opposite of all conventions. He renounces all realism to express lyricism. His landscapes are populated with figures stylized like children's drawings. The eye is attracted by a few splashes of color on a pale monochrome background.
In 1924 his preoccupation is pornographic. He is 31 years old and needs a woman. He develops the symbol of the man-tree, which is a link between ground and sky. The roots are replaced by bare legs and buttocks with a working sex. The arms are replaced by small side branches. The top of the figure is a mix between head and sun, with a single eye and cat whiskers.
Le Piège, painted in Mont-Roig during the summer of 1924, is a demonstrator of the new style. The work is preceded by a preparatory drawing which facilitates its deciphering. The trap on the beach is a kind of lobster rack in the shape of a female sex. It is beyond the reach of the sperm stream but awaits the rabbit and the hen which are walking in the foreground like innocent victims.
Breton is delighted. He immediately acquires the painting that he would keep throughout his life. This 92 x 73 cm oil, charcoal and graphite on canvas was sold for £ 5.3M including premium by Christie's on March 23, 2021, lot 115.
The surrealist influence faded in the following year with the first abstract works, sometimes overwritten with a short poem. As early as 1926, a work by Miro and Ernst for the Ballets Russes was considered a bourgeois drift by the surrealists and their communist friends. Miro will keep his creative autonomy intact.
Miro already considers his work to be anti-art, at the opposite of all conventions. He renounces all realism to express lyricism. His landscapes are populated with figures stylized like children's drawings. The eye is attracted by a few splashes of color on a pale monochrome background.
In 1924 his preoccupation is pornographic. He is 31 years old and needs a woman. He develops the symbol of the man-tree, which is a link between ground and sky. The roots are replaced by bare legs and buttocks with a working sex. The arms are replaced by small side branches. The top of the figure is a mix between head and sun, with a single eye and cat whiskers.
Le Piège, painted in Mont-Roig during the summer of 1924, is a demonstrator of the new style. The work is preceded by a preparatory drawing which facilitates its deciphering. The trap on the beach is a kind of lobster rack in the shape of a female sex. It is beyond the reach of the sperm stream but awaits the rabbit and the hen which are walking in the foreground like innocent victims.
Breton is delighted. He immediately acquires the painting that he would keep throughout his life. This 92 x 73 cm oil, charcoal and graphite on canvas was sold for £ 5.3M including premium by Christie's on March 23, 2021, lot 115.
The surrealist influence faded in the following year with the first abstract works, sometimes overwritten with a short poem. As early as 1926, a work by Miro and Ernst for the Ballets Russes was considered a bourgeois drift by the surrealists and their communist friends. Miro will keep his creative autonomy intact.
1924 Slave and Lion by Xu Beihong
2006 SOLD for HK$ 54M by Christie's
Xu Beihong was a promising art educator of 24 when he won a Chinese government scholarship in Paris in 1919. He was altogether ready to discover and follow Western influences and willing to support the threatened condition of his home country at the time of the warlords. He was based in Paris for eight years during which he also travelled in Western Europe.
His major discoveries at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts were the oil painting, the mythological themes, the nude and the post-Romantic realism of the Orientalistes. He did not miss to send reports to Beijing University.
This approach was unprecedented for a Chinese artist. A very early example is a Sleeping Venus in the nude, oil on canvas 62 x 95 cm completed in 1921, sold by Sotheby's for HK$ 47M on April 3, 2016.
Xu's first empathy with a fully grown male lion was in 1922 at the Berlin Tiergarten. The king of animals was the perfect symbol of the popular Chinese spirit in the early years of the Republic, right and proud despite the wounds. Lion and horse will be Xu's preferred themes throughout the rest of his career.
Slave and Lion, oil on canvas 123 x 153 cm painted in the year 13 of the Republic, 1924 CE, is the masterpiece of Xu and of the new reciprocal influences of Chinese and Western art. It is highly rare because it was in 1941 among the 40 important oil artworks that Xu lost forever and believed destructed after the Japanese entered Singapore. It is one of very few that have resurfaced after his death.
The theme previously used by Gérôme is in the first act of the Roman fable of Androclus. The lion is back to its den with a bleeding wound at its paw. Unknown to the animal, a fugitive slave had taken this cave as a shelter. Xu managed a chiaroscuro effect between the very dark foreground with the frightened man and the bright light on the animal.
The end of the first act, not shown in the painting, is soothing. Androclus managed to remove the thorn. The grateful lion will in its turn save the man a few years later when condemned to the wild beast in the Roman Colosseum. Xu had indeed painted the theme of the force generated by a suitable association of two disabled characters who both had needed help. The lush landscape indeed symbolises the Chinese rebirth.
Slave and Lion was sold for HK $ 54M by Christie's on November 26, 2006, lot 181, and passed at Christie's on May 24, 2021.
His major discoveries at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts were the oil painting, the mythological themes, the nude and the post-Romantic realism of the Orientalistes. He did not miss to send reports to Beijing University.
This approach was unprecedented for a Chinese artist. A very early example is a Sleeping Venus in the nude, oil on canvas 62 x 95 cm completed in 1921, sold by Sotheby's for HK$ 47M on April 3, 2016.
Xu's first empathy with a fully grown male lion was in 1922 at the Berlin Tiergarten. The king of animals was the perfect symbol of the popular Chinese spirit in the early years of the Republic, right and proud despite the wounds. Lion and horse will be Xu's preferred themes throughout the rest of his career.
Slave and Lion, oil on canvas 123 x 153 cm painted in the year 13 of the Republic, 1924 CE, is the masterpiece of Xu and of the new reciprocal influences of Chinese and Western art. It is highly rare because it was in 1941 among the 40 important oil artworks that Xu lost forever and believed destructed after the Japanese entered Singapore. It is one of very few that have resurfaced after his death.
The theme previously used by Gérôme is in the first act of the Roman fable of Androclus. The lion is back to its den with a bleeding wound at its paw. Unknown to the animal, a fugitive slave had taken this cave as a shelter. Xu managed a chiaroscuro effect between the very dark foreground with the frightened man and the bright light on the animal.
The end of the first act, not shown in the painting, is soothing. Androclus managed to remove the thorn. The grateful lion will in its turn save the man a few years later when condemned to the wild beast in the Roman Colosseum. Xu had indeed painted the theme of the force generated by a suitable association of two disabled characters who both had needed help. The lush landscape indeed symbolises the Chinese rebirth.
Slave and Lion was sold for HK $ 54M by Christie's on November 26, 2006, lot 181, and passed at Christie's on May 24, 2021.
