1938
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Picasso Picasso later 1930s Miro Germany II Xu Beihong Bird Cars 1930s Cars 1938-39 Alfa Romeo
See also : Picasso Picasso later 1930s Miro Germany II Xu Beihong Bird Cars 1930s Cars 1938-39 Alfa Romeo
1938 PICASSO
1
January 12 Femme à la Résille
2015 SOLD for $ 67M by Christie's
After Guernica, Picasso accepts an evidence : he now has two mistresses. He loves them for opposite reasons and decides not to choose. The sweet Marie-Thérèse is the mother of Maya. Dora invites for a passionate affair.
Of course, the two women can not get along. Pablo is amused. He executes parallel portraits and goes to mix their features in the same figure. Presented in the anonymity of the sitter, these portraits do not reveal their identity with certainty.
On May 11, 2015, Christie's sold for $ 67M at lot 15A Buste de femme (femme à la résille), oil on canvas 65 x 54 cm painted in Paris on January 12, 1938.
In front of a bright red background, the colors of the skin and the clothes are also strident. In her enthusiasm, Dora insinuated that when he changed his mistress Picasso changed also his style, his life, his friends and even his dog.
The exotic funny hat and the fishnet do not belong to Marie-Thérèse but Dora is not the only desire of the artist who is embarrassed by the colorist glory of his great rival Matisse. The eyes on two different levels are not only the reconstruction of perspective in the Cubist style, they also mark the duality of this figure whose face includes some lines from Marie-Thérèse.
This painting was important to Pablo who will never parted from it.
Response by Grok :
Quote
MoonStar Fine Arts @MoonStar_fa May 12, 2015
#AuctionUpdate #ChristiesInc NYC @ChristiesInc PABLO PICASSO BUSTE DE FEMME (FEMME À LA RÉSILLE) from 1938 sells …
Of course, the two women can not get along. Pablo is amused. He executes parallel portraits and goes to mix their features in the same figure. Presented in the anonymity of the sitter, these portraits do not reveal their identity with certainty.
On May 11, 2015, Christie's sold for $ 67M at lot 15A Buste de femme (femme à la résille), oil on canvas 65 x 54 cm painted in Paris on January 12, 1938.
In front of a bright red background, the colors of the skin and the clothes are also strident. In her enthusiasm, Dora insinuated that when he changed his mistress Picasso changed also his style, his life, his friends and even his dog.
The exotic funny hat and the fishnet do not belong to Marie-Thérèse but Dora is not the only desire of the artist who is embarrassed by the colorist glory of his great rival Matisse. The eyes on two different levels are not only the reconstruction of perspective in the Cubist style, they also mark the duality of this figure whose face includes some lines from Marie-Thérèse.
This painting was important to Pablo who will never parted from it.
Response by Grok :
Quote
MoonStar Fine Arts @MoonStar_fa May 12, 2015
#AuctionUpdate #ChristiesInc NYC @ChristiesInc PABLO PICASSO BUSTE DE FEMME (FEMME À LA RÉSILLE) from 1938 sells …
- The 1938 painting "Buste de femme (Femme à la résille)" by Pablo Picasso, sold for $67.36 million at Christie’s in 2015, reflects his deep personal attachment to the work, as it was one of the few he kept until his granddaughter Marina inherited it, showcasing a rare glimpse into his private collection.
- Created during Picasso’s intense relationship with Dora Maar, the painting’s bold style contrasts with his earlier lyrical works inspired by Marie-Thérèse Walter, aligning with a period of political turbulence including the 1937 Guernica bombing, suggesting Maar’s influence may have shifted his artistic and ideological focus.
- Christie’s 2015 auction data indicates a growing market for Picasso’s works, with this sale predating their record-breaking $1.5 billion Paul Allen collection auction in 2022, highlighting a steady rise in value driven by private collectors and institutional interest, though exact economic drivers remain understudied in peer-reviewed art market analyses.
2
January 14 Femme au Béret Rouge-Orange
2021 SOLD for $ 40.5M by Sotheby's
The duality of Picasso's mistresses in the post-Guernica period looks like a contest between the gentle Marie-Thérèse and the exuberant Dora. By mingling them in a single portrait, the artist is once again in quest of the ideal woman who would overcome both of them.
Some elements are readable by the viewer. Dora has a big hat and a dark hair and the blonde Marie-Thérèse has a beret. Picasso enjoys to blur such an identification by adding hidden symbols, in a surrealist mood, including in his choice of bold colors. This phase is highly experimental. The artist works for himself and keeps many of these pictures.
Femme au béret rouge-orange, a small size oil and ripolin on canvas 46 x 38 cm, was painted on January 14, 1938, two days after the dual Femme à la résille. On this new opus, the figure of Marie-Thérèse is obvious and no trace of Dora is appearing. Nevertheless the flamboyant color of the beret looks like a golden crown. Marie-Thérèse is the queen of that specific day. Dora will soon win the duel.
This opus went to Marina from Picasso's deceased estate. Coming now from the MGM art collection, it was sold for $ 40.5M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Sotheby's on October 23, 2021, lot 11.
Some elements are readable by the viewer. Dora has a big hat and a dark hair and the blonde Marie-Thérèse has a beret. Picasso enjoys to blur such an identification by adding hidden symbols, in a surrealist mood, including in his choice of bold colors. This phase is highly experimental. The artist works for himself and keeps many of these pictures.
Femme au béret rouge-orange, a small size oil and ripolin on canvas 46 x 38 cm, was painted on January 14, 1938, two days after the dual Femme à la résille. On this new opus, the figure of Marie-Thérèse is obvious and no trace of Dora is appearing. Nevertheless the flamboyant color of the beret looks like a golden crown. Marie-Thérèse is the queen of that specific day. Dora will soon win the duel.
This opus went to Marina from Picasso's deceased estate. Coming now from the MGM art collection, it was sold for $ 40.5M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Sotheby's on October 23, 2021, lot 11.
3
February 4 Fillette au Bateau, Maya
2023 SOLD for £ 18M by Sotheby's
Picasso had started January 1938 with a series of ambiguous portraits of his two muses, mingled unfairly for either. On January 16 he shifts to a much nicer subject : the gently smiling Maya, two years and a half old, his daughter by Marie-Thérèse.
He was delighted to find some resemblance of the pretty blonde girl with her mother. Maya was his second child. Keen to communicate and play with her in the appreciation of her own world at her level, he was redefining his artistic fatherhood in a full opposition with the mythological attire in the portraits of her half brother Paulo in the 1920s..
In this series the child is seated on the floor, gently holding a doll or a toy boat. The colors are joyously bright. The style may vary and the signature double perspective in the face is more or less important.
Fillette au bateau (Maya), oil on canvas 73 x 60 cm painted on February 4, 1938, was sold for £ 18M from a lower estimate of £ 12M by Sotheby's on March 1, 2023, lot 108.
He was delighted to find some resemblance of the pretty blonde girl with her mother. Maya was his second child. Keen to communicate and play with her in the appreciation of her own world at her level, he was redefining his artistic fatherhood in a full opposition with the mythological attire in the portraits of her half brother Paulo in the 1920s..
In this series the child is seated on the floor, gently holding a doll or a toy boat. The colors are joyously bright. The style may vary and the signature double perspective in the face is more or less important.
Fillette au bateau (Maya), oil on canvas 73 x 60 cm painted on February 4, 1938, was sold for £ 18M from a lower estimate of £ 12M by Sotheby's on March 1, 2023, lot 108.
4
May 7 Femme assise sur une Chaise
2015 SOLD for $ 20M by Sotheby's
Picasso's affair with Marie-Thérèse began with an aesthetic instinct : his young muse was a white-skinned variant of the African idols. Dora will shake Pablo out of his bliss by her fiery temperament.
Dora Maar became in 1937 the Weeping woman. Pablo himself felt that such an assimilation was unfair but the trauma of Guernica was too strong and he needed such a feminine symbol of misfortune.
The contrast between his two mistresses disturbs Pablo. He desires Dora but the overactive young woman is a mystery. The artist invents the dual portrait in which the face is drawn in profile with both eyes and both nostrils on the same side.
Dora manages to get the prime position in the heart of Pablo but without releasing her secrets. She remains elusive. On May 7, 1938, Pablo immobilizes her on a chair to make her portrait. This oil on canvas 125 x 87 cm was sold for $ 20M by Sotheby's on November 4, 2015, lot 24T. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Pablo reused the static theme of the locking by the chair for several years, including Dora Maar au Chat in 1941.
Dora Maar became in 1937 the Weeping woman. Pablo himself felt that such an assimilation was unfair but the trauma of Guernica was too strong and he needed such a feminine symbol of misfortune.
The contrast between his two mistresses disturbs Pablo. He desires Dora but the overactive young woman is a mystery. The artist invents the dual portrait in which the face is drawn in profile with both eyes and both nostrils on the same side.
Dora manages to get the prime position in the heart of Pablo but without releasing her secrets. She remains elusive. On May 7, 1938, Pablo immobilizes her on a chair to make her portrait. This oil on canvas 125 x 87 cm was sold for $ 20M by Sotheby's on November 4, 2015, lot 24T. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Pablo reused the static theme of the locking by the chair for several years, including Dora Maar au Chat in 1941.
5
May 20 Buste de Femme
2016 SOLD for $ 22.6M by Christie's
Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), dated May 20, 1938, oil on canvas 45 x 40 cm painted by Picasso, was sold for $ 22.6M by Christie's on November 16, 2016, lot 13B.
The bright palette is made of streaks of pink, flaming orange and yellow, and cooler tones of turquoise, blue and white. The woman is self assured with a direct gaze and wears a crown shaped red hat. The face is divided into an angular network of varied colors.
The bright palette is made of streaks of pink, flaming orange and yellow, and cooler tones of turquoise, blue and white. The woman is self assured with a direct gaze and wears a crown shaped red hat. The face is divided into an angular network of varied colors.
6
December 10 Femme assise dans un jardin
1999 SOLD for $ 49.5M by Sotheby's
In 1935 Picasso was obsessed with his illusion of incarnation in the Minotaur. The sweet Marie-Thérèse, who gives birth to Maya, cannot help him in this satisfaction. He meets Dora Maar at that time.
Everything opposes the blonde and the brunette. Dora is a photographer and an artist. She is exuberant in the colors of her hats, brooches and nails, and her lipstick is too intense. As early as 1936 Picasso paints her in the nude, handed over to the Minotaur.
In 1937 Dora participates in the preparation of Guernica by Pablo and becomes his mistress. La Femme qui pleure is Dora's incorporation into the drama of Spain. From 1938 Pablo develops a new iconography of his goddess by placing her on a large armchair that looks like a throne.
On November 10, 1999, Sotheby's sold for $ 49.5M Femme assise dans un jardin, which is a portrait of Dora.
This 130 x 97 cm oil on canvas is an explosion of bright colors. Pablo painted it in a single day, December 10, 1938. The garden is a naive drawing of stylized branches. The war is temporarily forgotten.
Femme assise dans un jardin is illustrated in 2006 in an article shared by Artnet, alongside Dora Maar au chat which had just been sold by Sotheby's.
The resemblance is striking between these two works of same dimensions. The composition is similar. Dora Maar au chat, painted in 1941, is a war painting. The joyous freedom of the garden is replaced by a mere wall. This lockdown is compensated by a forced smile and the black cat, the only additional symbol that supersedes the garden, is an evil intrusion.
Grok thought :
Quote
El Club del Arte @Arteymas_ Feb 24, 2021
Mujer sentada en el jardín, 1938, Pablo Picasso
Everything opposes the blonde and the brunette. Dora is a photographer and an artist. She is exuberant in the colors of her hats, brooches and nails, and her lipstick is too intense. As early as 1936 Picasso paints her in the nude, handed over to the Minotaur.
In 1937 Dora participates in the preparation of Guernica by Pablo and becomes his mistress. La Femme qui pleure is Dora's incorporation into the drama of Spain. From 1938 Pablo develops a new iconography of his goddess by placing her on a large armchair that looks like a throne.
On November 10, 1999, Sotheby's sold for $ 49.5M Femme assise dans un jardin, which is a portrait of Dora.
This 130 x 97 cm oil on canvas is an explosion of bright colors. Pablo painted it in a single day, December 10, 1938. The garden is a naive drawing of stylized branches. The war is temporarily forgotten.
Femme assise dans un jardin is illustrated in 2006 in an article shared by Artnet, alongside Dora Maar au chat which had just been sold by Sotheby's.
The resemblance is striking between these two works of same dimensions. The composition is similar. Dora Maar au chat, painted in 1941, is a war painting. The joyous freedom of the garden is replaced by a mere wall. This lockdown is compensated by a forced smile and the black cat, the only additional symbol that supersedes the garden, is an evil intrusion.
Grok thought :
Quote
El Club del Arte @Arteymas_ Feb 24, 2021
Mujer sentada en el jardín, 1938, Pablo Picasso
- This 1938 oil painting by Pablo Picasso, titled "Femme assise dans un jardin," portrays his muse and lover Dora Maar seated amid lush foliage, using Cubist fragmentation to blend her angular form with the garden's organic curves for a sense of distorted tranquility.
- Created in a single day on December 10 after Picasso's year-long painting hiatus focused on poetry, it marks his return to canvas during a period of personal turmoil following the Spanish Civil War's Guernica.
- The work sold for $49.5 million at Sotheby's in 1999, underscoring its significance as a vibrant example of Picasso's late 1930s style, now held in private collections and admired for its bold color contrasts evoking emotional depth.
1938 BECKMANN
1
Hölle der Vögel
2017 SOLD for £ 36M by Christie's
After the First World War, German artists like Max Beckmann, Max Ernst, George Grosz and Otto Dix brought social criticism to the level of a major art far beyond caricature. Of course the Nazi regime does not agree. Beckmann is one of the targets of Hitler's furious attacks on degenerate art.
Beckmann precipitately left Germany in 1937 and settled in Amsterdam. Like Miro at the same time in Spain, he could not manage to stay away from politics. He immediately conceived a great composition, first entitled Der Land des Wahnsinningen (the country of the insane) which would express his horror of the collectivisms.
Completed at the end of the summer of 1938, Hölle der Vögel (hell of birds) is the achievement of that project. This oil on canvas 120 x 160 cm was sold for £ 36M by Christie's on June 27, 2017, lot 11. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
This scene mixes the medieval and the modern to better express the permanent threat of abject persecution. Tortures are inflicted by hooded birds. In a claustrophobic atmosphere with black lines and garish colors, the victim chained on an Inquisition bed is a light spot. A bird plows his back to the blood with a large knife.
This lugubrious ceremony is presided by a harpy standing out of her broken egg with a monstrous breast. The crowd of secondary characters is made up of screaming nudes who perform the Hitler Grüss, removing any possible doubt about the interpretation of this allegory in the modern world.
The narrative abundance in that work is inspired by medieval imagery. The choice of the bird as a symbol of blind fury reminds the man-swallowing bird in Bosch's Hell.
The political violence in Hölle der Vögel may be compared to Picasso's Guernica, also conceived in 1937. Beckmann's painting, cautiously preserved in a private apartment in Paris until the end of the Second World War, would have deserved a similar notoriety.
Beckmann precipitately left Germany in 1937 and settled in Amsterdam. Like Miro at the same time in Spain, he could not manage to stay away from politics. He immediately conceived a great composition, first entitled Der Land des Wahnsinningen (the country of the insane) which would express his horror of the collectivisms.
Completed at the end of the summer of 1938, Hölle der Vögel (hell of birds) is the achievement of that project. This oil on canvas 120 x 160 cm was sold for £ 36M by Christie's on June 27, 2017, lot 11. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
This scene mixes the medieval and the modern to better express the permanent threat of abject persecution. Tortures are inflicted by hooded birds. In a claustrophobic atmosphere with black lines and garish colors, the victim chained on an Inquisition bed is a light spot. A bird plows his back to the blood with a large knife.
This lugubrious ceremony is presided by a harpy standing out of her broken egg with a monstrous breast. The crowd of secondary characters is made up of screaming nudes who perform the Hitler Grüss, removing any possible doubt about the interpretation of this allegory in the modern world.
The narrative abundance in that work is inspired by medieval imagery. The choice of the bird as a symbol of blind fury reminds the man-swallowing bird in Bosch's Hell.
The political violence in Hölle der Vögel may be compared to Picasso's Guernica, also conceived in 1937. Beckmann's painting, cautiously preserved in a private apartment in Paris until the end of the Second World War, would have deserved a similar notoriety.
Hölle der Vögel (Birds’ Hell) by Max Beckmann (1937–1938)
Max Beckmann’s Hölle der Vögel (oil on canvas, 119.7 × 160.4 cm) is a nightmarish allegorical scene depicting anthropomorphic birds torturing human figures in a candle-lit, cave-like chamber. The composition features vivid, garish colors, distorted forms, and symbolic elements: a bound naked man being slashed across the back, a multi-breasted female bird emerging from an egg with a raised arm (evoking the Hitler salute), monstrous bird-creatures presiding over piles of gold, and background figures saluting in conformity.
Significance in Beckmann’s Career
Painted during Beckmann’s early exile in Amsterdam (begun in 1937 after fleeing Nazi Germany the day after Hitler’s 1937 speech on “degenerate art,” completed in 1938), Hölle der Vögel marks a rare overtly political statement in his oeuvre. Unlike his more cryptic triptychs or mythological works of the exile period (1937–1947), it is a direct, searing indictment of Nazism—often compared to Picasso’s Guernica (1937) as the “Guernica of German Expressionism.” It represents one of Beckmann’s clearest anti-Nazi works, produced amid personal trauma: over 500 of his artworks were confiscated, and he was branded “degenerate.” Art historians note it as a pivotal exile piece, bridging his Weimar-era social critiques with the intense, allegorical intensity of his later Amsterdam works. In 2017, it sold at Christie’s London (June 27, lot 11) for £36 million ($45.8 million), setting a record for Beckmann and German Expressionism, underscoring its canonical status.
Meaning and Interpretation
The painting is widely interpreted as an allegory of Nazi Germany: the grotesque birds symbolize Nazi officials (derisively called “gold pheasants” for their ornate uniforms), infesting society like a plague and perpetrating cruelty. The tortured naked man represents innocent victims or the oppressed individual; the saluting figures evoke mass conformity and the Hitlergruss; the multi-breasted bird may parody fascist fertility cults or the regime itself. Drawing on Northern Renaissance traditions (Bosch, Brueghel), it portrays a medieval hell as a timeless vision of human descent into terror, oppression, and madness—an early sketch was titled Land der Wahnsinnigen (Land of the Insane).
While rooted in 1930s fascism, Beckmann intended broader resonance: a warning against periodic societal “infestations” of irrationality and brutality, applicable “to all times.” It critiques the inversion of order—brutality “taking wing”—and the seductive allure of conformity amid chaos.
Psychological Analysis
Psychologically, the work channels Beckmann’s anguish and trauma from exile, loss of homeland, and the Nazi assault on individuality (to which he, as a “degenerate” artist, belonged). The crowded, claustrophobic space reflects inner turmoil and existential dread, echoing his philosophy of transcending life’s “illusion” toward essential truths (as in his triptychs). The contrast between the garish, festive colors of the “diabolical feast” and the horror suggests the seductive danger of mass hysteria—appealing yet destructive to the independent spirit. It embodies the individual (tortured victim) versus the collective (conforming, instinct-driven masses), highlighting themes of imprisonment, freedom, intellect versus primal impulse, and the suffering of those who resist conformity. Critics describe it as a “cry of anguish,” a personal J’accuse against forces destroying civilization, while universalizing human tendencies toward self-destruction.
Max Beckmann’s Hölle der Vögel (oil on canvas, 119.7 × 160.4 cm) is a nightmarish allegorical scene depicting anthropomorphic birds torturing human figures in a candle-lit, cave-like chamber. The composition features vivid, garish colors, distorted forms, and symbolic elements: a bound naked man being slashed across the back, a multi-breasted female bird emerging from an egg with a raised arm (evoking the Hitler salute), monstrous bird-creatures presiding over piles of gold, and background figures saluting in conformity.
Significance in Beckmann’s Career
Painted during Beckmann’s early exile in Amsterdam (begun in 1937 after fleeing Nazi Germany the day after Hitler’s 1937 speech on “degenerate art,” completed in 1938), Hölle der Vögel marks a rare overtly political statement in his oeuvre. Unlike his more cryptic triptychs or mythological works of the exile period (1937–1947), it is a direct, searing indictment of Nazism—often compared to Picasso’s Guernica (1937) as the “Guernica of German Expressionism.” It represents one of Beckmann’s clearest anti-Nazi works, produced amid personal trauma: over 500 of his artworks were confiscated, and he was branded “degenerate.” Art historians note it as a pivotal exile piece, bridging his Weimar-era social critiques with the intense, allegorical intensity of his later Amsterdam works. In 2017, it sold at Christie’s London (June 27, lot 11) for £36 million ($45.8 million), setting a record for Beckmann and German Expressionism, underscoring its canonical status.
Meaning and Interpretation
The painting is widely interpreted as an allegory of Nazi Germany: the grotesque birds symbolize Nazi officials (derisively called “gold pheasants” for their ornate uniforms), infesting society like a plague and perpetrating cruelty. The tortured naked man represents innocent victims or the oppressed individual; the saluting figures evoke mass conformity and the Hitlergruss; the multi-breasted bird may parody fascist fertility cults or the regime itself. Drawing on Northern Renaissance traditions (Bosch, Brueghel), it portrays a medieval hell as a timeless vision of human descent into terror, oppression, and madness—an early sketch was titled Land der Wahnsinnigen (Land of the Insane).
While rooted in 1930s fascism, Beckmann intended broader resonance: a warning against periodic societal “infestations” of irrationality and brutality, applicable “to all times.” It critiques the inversion of order—brutality “taking wing”—and the seductive allure of conformity amid chaos.
Psychological Analysis
Psychologically, the work channels Beckmann’s anguish and trauma from exile, loss of homeland, and the Nazi assault on individuality (to which he, as a “degenerate” artist, belonged). The crowded, claustrophobic space reflects inner turmoil and existential dread, echoing his philosophy of transcending life’s “illusion” toward essential truths (as in his triptychs). The contrast between the garish, festive colors of the “diabolical feast” and the horror suggests the seductive danger of mass hysteria—appealing yet destructive to the independent spirit. It embodies the individual (tortured victim) versus the collective (conforming, instinct-driven masses), highlighting themes of imprisonment, freedom, intellect versus primal impulse, and the suffering of those who resist conformity. Critics describe it as a “cry of anguish,” a personal J’accuse against forces destroying civilization, while universalizing human tendencies toward self-destruction.
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2
Self Portrait with Horn
2001 SOLD for $ 22.5M by Sotheby's
Max Beckmann does not accept that his art is described as degenerate by Hitler. Painted in 1936, his self-portrait with a crystal ball is a poignant message : he would like to react but does not have the solution. He is only 52 but he certainly appreciates that his premature aging and his surly attitude will not help him. The shadow over the eyes does not encourage dialogue. This oil on canvas 110 x 65 cm was sold for $ 16.8M by Sotheby's on May 3, 2005.
In 1937 it is much worse. The Nazis confiscate 500 of his works from museums and include several in the Degenerate Art Exhibition in Munich. Threatened with imprisonment and castration, Beckmann flees Germany and settles in his sister-in-law's home in Amsterdam.
His works mark then a desire for revenge, now with a scathing criticism of the Nazi regime. On May 10, 2001, Sotheby's sold for $ 22.5M a Self-portrait with horn, oil on canvas 110 x 100 cm painted in 1938. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The instrument is not played but brandished at the height of the closed mouth like a helpless challenge. The sullen mouth expresses anxiety and once again the eyes are in the shade. The striped jacket resembles the uniform of a convict or a Harlequin.
In 1937 it is much worse. The Nazis confiscate 500 of his works from museums and include several in the Degenerate Art Exhibition in Munich. Threatened with imprisonment and castration, Beckmann flees Germany and settles in his sister-in-law's home in Amsterdam.
His works mark then a desire for revenge, now with a scathing criticism of the Nazi regime. On May 10, 2001, Sotheby's sold for $ 22.5M a Self-portrait with horn, oil on canvas 110 x 100 cm painted in 1938. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The instrument is not played but brandished at the height of the closed mouth like a helpless challenge. The sullen mouth expresses anxiety and once again the eyes are in the shade. The striped jacket resembles the uniform of a convict or a Harlequin.
1938 Water Carriers in Sichuan by Xu Beihong
2010 SOLD for RMB 170M by Hanhai
In 1937, after the capture of Nanjing by the Japanese, the Chinese government relocates in Chongqing in Sichuan. An unwavering patriot encouraging the heroism through his art, Xu Beihong moves to Chongqing in that year.
A scene of water bearers painted by Xu Beihong in 1938 in a bold vertical composition is located in that new wartime capital. Seven men in four groups draw the water and carry it to the top of the hill through steep stairs. This scene is displaying a traditional harsh activity in the then symbolic location of Chinese freedom.
This painting 300 x 62 cm in ink and color is titled Ba-ren-ji-shui (Water carriers in Sichuan). Its style is highly realistic both for the figures of the routine barefoot workers and for the mountainous scenery.
It was sold for RMB 170M by Hanhai on December 11, 2010. It is illustrated in the post sale report shared by Artron.
A new park is inaugurated in Chongqing in 2024 around the real location of Xu's Ba-ren-ji-shui. The stunning representation of the real stairs by the artist is demonstrated in the report shared by the city of Chongqing. The mighty waterfall had not been useful for Xu's social message and was omitted in his painting.
Xu created more than 300 artworks while he was in Chongqing from 1937 to 1946.
A scene of water bearers painted by Xu Beihong in 1938 in a bold vertical composition is located in that new wartime capital. Seven men in four groups draw the water and carry it to the top of the hill through steep stairs. This scene is displaying a traditional harsh activity in the then symbolic location of Chinese freedom.
This painting 300 x 62 cm in ink and color is titled Ba-ren-ji-shui (Water carriers in Sichuan). Its style is highly realistic both for the figures of the routine barefoot workers and for the mountainous scenery.
It was sold for RMB 170M by Hanhai on December 11, 2010. It is illustrated in the post sale report shared by Artron.
A new park is inaugurated in Chongqing in 2024 around the real location of Xu's Ba-ren-ji-shui. The stunning representation of the real stairs by the artist is demonstrated in the report shared by the city of Chongqing. The mighty waterfall had not been useful for Xu's social message and was omitted in his painting.
Xu created more than 300 artworks while he was in Chongqing from 1937 to 1946.
1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 B
2019 SOLD for € 16.7M by Artcurial
At the time of totalitarianism, motor racing became a major showcase of high-tech know-how. To compete with the Silver Arrows, Alfa Romeo develops a stiffened chassis and an independent suspension with which it equips the Tipo C for the grand prix and the 6C 2300 B for grand touring.
Under the direct control of the Italian government, Alfa Romeo improves the performance of its luxury and sports cars throughout the 1930s by the skill of the engineer Vittorio Jano. The 6-cylinder version (6C) grows in several stages from 1750 to 2500 cc. Aimed at the high end, the 8-cylinder version (8C) is created in 1931 with 2300 cc. Introduced in 1935 the 8C 2900 A targets the endurance racing.
The grand touring model 8C 2900 B is available with a straight 8 engine in two wheel bases from 1937 : Corto and Lungo, 2.80 m and 3 m respectively. It was the fastest commercial car of its time. A racing version averaged 210 km/h over a 80 km section of autostrada.
Alfa Romeo has special relationships with two body shops that offer dissimilar products. A 8C 2900 B assembled by Pinin Farina in cabriolet was sold for $ 4.1M by Christie's on August 28, 1999.
In Milan also, Carrozzeria Touring patented in 1936 its Superleggera technology : after advanced aerodynamic studies, this company offers all-metal bodies, a novelty at that time. Alfa Romeo actively supports this development that will enable its Lungo variant to compete advantageously with the heavy Mercedes-Benz 540K.
In 1937 Touring develops two bodies for the new 8C 2900 B : a spider for the short chassis and a berlinetta for the long chassis. The closed cockpit allows a body made entirely of aluminum unlike the spider which requires reinforcements in steel. For this reason the spider is heavier than the coupe. It will also be built for the long chassis.
The war interrupted this activity. Indeed in 1939 Alfa Romeo is already offering the features that will make the success of sports cars after the war : the open spider from as early as 1931, and the closed berlinetta.
The total population of 8C 2900 B Touring berlinettas is five units. The second, built in 1938, is titled 1939, the date of its registration in the United Kingdom. It was used sparingly except for a brief period in the 1950s and was carefully maintained by its successive owners without ever being disassembled.
Remaining since 1976 in a single collection, it was sold for € 16.7M by Artcurial on February 8, 2019, lot 20. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Two other 8C 2900 B berlinettas by Touring were awarded the highly prestigious Best Of Show of Pebble Beach's Concours d'Elegance, in 2008 and 2018 respectively.
Under the direct control of the Italian government, Alfa Romeo improves the performance of its luxury and sports cars throughout the 1930s by the skill of the engineer Vittorio Jano. The 6-cylinder version (6C) grows in several stages from 1750 to 2500 cc. Aimed at the high end, the 8-cylinder version (8C) is created in 1931 with 2300 cc. Introduced in 1935 the 8C 2900 A targets the endurance racing.
The grand touring model 8C 2900 B is available with a straight 8 engine in two wheel bases from 1937 : Corto and Lungo, 2.80 m and 3 m respectively. It was the fastest commercial car of its time. A racing version averaged 210 km/h over a 80 km section of autostrada.
Alfa Romeo has special relationships with two body shops that offer dissimilar products. A 8C 2900 B assembled by Pinin Farina in cabriolet was sold for $ 4.1M by Christie's on August 28, 1999.
In Milan also, Carrozzeria Touring patented in 1936 its Superleggera technology : after advanced aerodynamic studies, this company offers all-metal bodies, a novelty at that time. Alfa Romeo actively supports this development that will enable its Lungo variant to compete advantageously with the heavy Mercedes-Benz 540K.
In 1937 Touring develops two bodies for the new 8C 2900 B : a spider for the short chassis and a berlinetta for the long chassis. The closed cockpit allows a body made entirely of aluminum unlike the spider which requires reinforcements in steel. For this reason the spider is heavier than the coupe. It will also be built for the long chassis.
The war interrupted this activity. Indeed in 1939 Alfa Romeo is already offering the features that will make the success of sports cars after the war : the open spider from as early as 1931, and the closed berlinetta.
The total population of 8C 2900 B Touring berlinettas is five units. The second, built in 1938, is titled 1939, the date of its registration in the United Kingdom. It was used sparingly except for a brief period in the 1950s and was carefully maintained by its successive owners without ever being disassembled.
Remaining since 1976 in a single collection, it was sold for € 16.7M by Artcurial on February 8, 2019, lot 20. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Two other 8C 2900 B berlinettas by Touring were awarded the highly prestigious Best Of Show of Pebble Beach's Concours d'Elegance, in 2008 and 2018 respectively.
