1993
1993 A Decrepit Utopia
2020 SOLD for £ 14M including premium
After the war, it was necessary to rebuild. Le Corbusier offers a new concept with a social vocation, the Unité d'Habitation, better known as Cité Radieuse. The first example, the Maison du Fada in Marseille, is immediately famous.
On the same principle of building bars housing more than 300 apartments, Le Corbusier constructs from 1959 in the middle of the forest the Unité d'Habitation of Briey, for enabling a housing solution to the influx of workers in Lorraine. The recession of the mining basin and various construction defects led to the final evacuation of the building in 1983.
Le Corbusier is the symbol of social modernism. His frontages with a too strict geometry evoke the compositions of Mondrian. In 1991, the Unité of Briey is left as nothing more than an abandoned work of art 110 meters long, 56 meters high and 19 meters wide. Peter Doig visits the site with a group solicited to propose a restoration and takes some photos through the trees.
For the young artist, the Unité of Briey is a memory which reconstructs a bygone past. The theme combines art, modernism, the reconquest of the site by nature. He begins his series of nine large-format paintings titled Concrete Cabins. Through the dark trees, the bar has no perspective, in a dynamic overview in the manner of Cézanne. The mingle of pictorial techniques is influenced by Richter.
One of the nine opus shows another view. 300 meters from the main structure, the boiler house had anticipated the disuse of the rest of the Unité. We no longer use coal heating. The two-level facade is decrepit and the windows are gaping. The chimneys look like two horns above this haggard dwelling even more sinister or pitiful in the bright daylight.
Cabin Boiler House, oil on canvas 200 x 275 cm painted in 1993, will be sold by Christie's in New York on October 22, lot 110.
The building bar and the boiler house have both been listed in the inventory of the French historical monuments with the label of Patrimoine du XXème siècle, respectively in 1993 and 2007
On the same principle of building bars housing more than 300 apartments, Le Corbusier constructs from 1959 in the middle of the forest the Unité d'Habitation of Briey, for enabling a housing solution to the influx of workers in Lorraine. The recession of the mining basin and various construction defects led to the final evacuation of the building in 1983.
Le Corbusier is the symbol of social modernism. His frontages with a too strict geometry evoke the compositions of Mondrian. In 1991, the Unité of Briey is left as nothing more than an abandoned work of art 110 meters long, 56 meters high and 19 meters wide. Peter Doig visits the site with a group solicited to propose a restoration and takes some photos through the trees.
For the young artist, the Unité of Briey is a memory which reconstructs a bygone past. The theme combines art, modernism, the reconquest of the site by nature. He begins his series of nine large-format paintings titled Concrete Cabins. Through the dark trees, the bar has no perspective, in a dynamic overview in the manner of Cézanne. The mingle of pictorial techniques is influenced by Richter.
One of the nine opus shows another view. 300 meters from the main structure, the boiler house had anticipated the disuse of the rest of the Unité. We no longer use coal heating. The two-level facade is decrepit and the windows are gaping. The chimneys look like two horns above this haggard dwelling even more sinister or pitiful in the bright daylight.
Cabin Boiler House, oil on canvas 200 x 275 cm painted in 1993, will be sold by Christie's in New York on October 22, lot 110.
The building bar and the boiler house have both been listed in the inventory of the French historical monuments with the label of Patrimoine du XXème siècle, respectively in 1993 and 2007
1993-1994 Viewing the Concrete
2015 SOLD for £ 9.6M including premium
The man leaves sometimes within nature the grandiose remains of his desires and of his abandoned projects. Peter Doig is an explorer of such lost sites that emit an intense emotion. He is also a contemporary painter with an impeccable technique who readily acknowledges the influence of the masters onto his art.
His large size paintings provide a fascinating effect. His bold compositions are inspired by Cézanne, who knew to incorporate foregrounds in a scenery without hiding the majesty of the background while also avoiding to cheat against the laws of perspective. The achievement is the impression of an approachable infinity.
In his imaginary scenes with empty canoes in a wild forest, Doig achieved this effect by the reflection in the water and the disappearance of the horizon. Swamped, painted in 1990, was sold for $ 26M including premium by Christie's on May 11, 2015.
The artist visited in 1991 Le Corbusier's cité in Briey-en-Forêt, emptied fifteen years before. He was influenced by its architectural style that is linked to the abstract expression of nature by Mondrian. Above all, the view of this ghost urbanization through the dense network of trees provided one of these post-Cézannian themes which were the thread of his own research. He began the series entitled Concrete Cabins.
Painted in 1991, the Architect's home in the ravine is a daylight view of a site near Toronto. The house is gradually covered by the trees same as when Pollock covered his canvases with colors. This oil on canvas 200 x 250 cm was sold for £ 7.7 million including premium by Christie's on February 13, 2013.
On October 16 in London, Christie's sells Cabin Essence Black, oil on canvas 230 x 350 cm dated 1993-1994, lot 11.
The large building in the night, inspired from Briey, seems very near with its many lights filtered through the dark trees. Doig was probably influenced by the latest expressionist researches of Richter. The result is a sumptuous effect of shine and shadow that may be seen as an echo to the Isle of the dead by Böcklin.
I invite you to watch the video shared by Christie's.
His large size paintings provide a fascinating effect. His bold compositions are inspired by Cézanne, who knew to incorporate foregrounds in a scenery without hiding the majesty of the background while also avoiding to cheat against the laws of perspective. The achievement is the impression of an approachable infinity.
In his imaginary scenes with empty canoes in a wild forest, Doig achieved this effect by the reflection in the water and the disappearance of the horizon. Swamped, painted in 1990, was sold for $ 26M including premium by Christie's on May 11, 2015.
The artist visited in 1991 Le Corbusier's cité in Briey-en-Forêt, emptied fifteen years before. He was influenced by its architectural style that is linked to the abstract expression of nature by Mondrian. Above all, the view of this ghost urbanization through the dense network of trees provided one of these post-Cézannian themes which were the thread of his own research. He began the series entitled Concrete Cabins.
Painted in 1991, the Architect's home in the ravine is a daylight view of a site near Toronto. The house is gradually covered by the trees same as when Pollock covered his canvases with colors. This oil on canvas 200 x 250 cm was sold for £ 7.7 million including premium by Christie's on February 13, 2013.
On October 16 in London, Christie's sells Cabin Essence Black, oil on canvas 230 x 350 cm dated 1993-1994, lot 11.
The large building in the night, inspired from Briey, seems very near with its many lights filtered through the dark trees. Doig was probably influenced by the latest expressionist researches of Richter. The result is a sumptuous effect of shine and shadow that may be seen as an echo to the Isle of the dead by Böcklin.
I invite you to watch the video shared by Christie's.
1993 The Second Elder Brother
2012 SOLD 52 MHK$ including premium
narrated again in 2020 before a private auction
Zhang Xiaogang was born in 1958, a few years before the Cultural Revolution. He began his career with symbolist themes such as the meaning of mankind. In 1989 the massacre of intellectuals in Tiananmen Square opened a new period of Chinese art.
In 1992 Zhang spent three months in Germany. Confused by the venality of European art, he decided to devote his art to a deeper expression of contemporary China. He will however be influenced by the re-use of banal photos by Richter.
When he returned to China, he found family photos of his childhood at his parents' house. In 1993 he produced a first painting showing his eldest brother between his parents. The face is light red. The family tie is made by two thin blood-red threads which link the baby to each of his parents. The incoherent lighting of the faces maintains a fantasy that is a tribute to Magritte.
The second opus is conceptually and politically more ambitious although the composition is similar. The baby with a bright yellow face is here the second elder brother. If the one-child policy in force in 1993 had been applicable in their childhood, that infant and also the artist himself should not have existed. The red threads become more visible. The baby brings no joy. Zhang managed to display an ugly being whose cross eyed do not match the original photo.
After these two works, Zhang defines the title of this new series as Bloodline - Big Family, to extend it to a global representation of the Chinese people who apply with a docile indifference the too strict rules of the new society.
The second opus thus becomes Bloodline - Big Family: Family No 2. This oil on canvas 110 x 130 cm was sold for HK $ 52M including premium by Sotheby's on April 2, 2012, lot 810. I narrated it in this column before that sale. It will be sold by Sotheby's in a silent auction in Hong Kong on May 23, lot 6002. The result of the auction will remain confidential.
In 1992 Zhang spent three months in Germany. Confused by the venality of European art, he decided to devote his art to a deeper expression of contemporary China. He will however be influenced by the re-use of banal photos by Richter.
When he returned to China, he found family photos of his childhood at his parents' house. In 1993 he produced a first painting showing his eldest brother between his parents. The face is light red. The family tie is made by two thin blood-red threads which link the baby to each of his parents. The incoherent lighting of the faces maintains a fantasy that is a tribute to Magritte.
The second opus is conceptually and politically more ambitious although the composition is similar. The baby with a bright yellow face is here the second elder brother. If the one-child policy in force in 1993 had been applicable in their childhood, that infant and also the artist himself should not have existed. The red threads become more visible. The baby brings no joy. Zhang managed to display an ugly being whose cross eyed do not match the original photo.
After these two works, Zhang defines the title of this new series as Bloodline - Big Family, to extend it to a global representation of the Chinese people who apply with a docile indifference the too strict rules of the new society.
The second opus thus becomes Bloodline - Big Family: Family No 2. This oil on canvas 110 x 130 cm was sold for HK $ 52M including premium by Sotheby's on April 2, 2012, lot 810. I narrated it in this column before that sale. It will be sold by Sotheby's in a silent auction in Hong Kong on May 23, lot 6002. The result of the auction will remain confidential.
(1959) - 1993 The Acoustic Grunge
2020 SOLD for $ 6M including premium
In the 1990s, young people wanted to have an authentic and relaxed life, opposed to the orthodoxy of their elders. Their main subculture is the grunge, a mixture of hard rock and heavy metal for music, and of hippie and punk for a deliberately offbeat clothing.
This trend ensures the fame for the group Nirvana, created in 1987, and its leader, singer, guitarist and co-founder Kurt Cobain. The grunge is often named the Seattle music.
In 1989 the musical television channel MTV created Unplugged, a series of programs in which groups were invited to reinterpret their best songs while leaving all electronic equipment except microphones.
Nirvana accepts MTV's invitation for a recording to be made on November 18, 1993. They need this program for boosting the sales of their album In Utero, which had not the expected success. Kurt Cobain is excessively nervous during the preparation phase, probably feeling a risk of recuperation of his art by the establishment. He imposes his solutions on the MTV team, including a morbid setting.
For the show, Nirvana plays fourteen songs in one take. In accordance with his commitment, Cobain uses an acoustic guitar. He chose a Martin D18-E from 1959. This instrument is one of the stars of the show : in the last sequence, Cobain places it reverently on its stand and leaves the stage.
Kurt was an irreducible perfectionist. He could not bring himself to offer an exclusively acoustic sound in this program. A hidden pickup was used in the Martin for at least one of the songs.
The record titled MTV Unplugged in New York released a year later is one of Nirvana's greatest hits, posthumously for Cobain. The Martin is estimated $ 1M in the sale organized by Julien's in Beverly Hills on June 19 and 20, lot 742. The olive green cardigan worn by the blond singer in this show was sold for $ 334K including premium on October 25, 2019 by the same auction house.
This trend ensures the fame for the group Nirvana, created in 1987, and its leader, singer, guitarist and co-founder Kurt Cobain. The grunge is often named the Seattle music.
In 1989 the musical television channel MTV created Unplugged, a series of programs in which groups were invited to reinterpret their best songs while leaving all electronic equipment except microphones.
Nirvana accepts MTV's invitation for a recording to be made on November 18, 1993. They need this program for boosting the sales of their album In Utero, which had not the expected success. Kurt Cobain is excessively nervous during the preparation phase, probably feeling a risk of recuperation of his art by the establishment. He imposes his solutions on the MTV team, including a morbid setting.
For the show, Nirvana plays fourteen songs in one take. In accordance with his commitment, Cobain uses an acoustic guitar. He chose a Martin D18-E from 1959. This instrument is one of the stars of the show : in the last sequence, Cobain places it reverently on its stand and leaves the stage.
Kurt was an irreducible perfectionist. He could not bring himself to offer an exclusively acoustic sound in this program. A hidden pickup was used in the Martin for at least one of the songs.
The record titled MTV Unplugged in New York released a year later is one of Nirvana's greatest hits, posthumously for Cobain. The Martin is estimated $ 1M in the sale organized by Julien's in Beverly Hills on June 19 and 20, lot 742. The olive green cardigan worn by the blond singer in this show was sold for $ 334K including premium on October 25, 2019 by the same auction house.
1993 The Master of Monaco
2018 SOLD for € 4.2M including premium
After the 1992 season McLaren's supremacy is threatened : they lost their winning engine due to Honda's withdrawal from Formula One. They find a compromise with Ford Cosworth for 1993 but that does not satisfy anyone. Ford is in contract with Benetton to whom they reserve their best technological developments, and the Ford V8 is significantly less powerful than the Renault engine of the Williams.
The reference of the new McLaren with a Ford engine is MP4/8(A). Ayrton Senna has doubts but eventually agrees to stay with McLaren. He wins two of the first five Grand Prix including a stellar victory at Donington Park.
For the sixth Grand Prix of the season in Monaco, the MP4/8 number 6 is attributed to Senna. He knows this difficult circuit where he previously won five times, sharing the prestigious record of Graham Hill.
McLaren no longer has the best car but the skill of its development team to exploit to the extreme the tolerances of the regulations, combined with Senna's legendary motivation, makes it possible to compete with Williams.
During the free practice the McLaren spins at 160 km/h. Senna is safe thanks to the secure design of the McLaren cockpit. The accident was generated by an error in an automatic instruction within the new active suspension. At such a high level, driving is a continuous re-learning even for a pilot as experienced as Senna.
Senna knew to comment on his psychic states. He was very scared. The accident took place on Thursday. Senna continues with the same car that has not been damaged. On Sunday he had mentally integrated the consequences of the accident and wins for the sixth time in his career the Monaco Grand Prix.
He drives the car in six further Grand Prix but without a win. Alain Prost is the 1993 world champion with Williams-Renault.
The MP4/8A-6 has remained authentic including the engine and gearbox of its victory in Monaco. It returns to the Principality to be sold on May 11 by Bonhams, lot 119.
The image of this car driven by Senna at Hockenheim is shared by Wikimedia with attribution : By Runmatze~commonswiki / Landmensch [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], from Wikimedia Commons
The reference of the new McLaren with a Ford engine is MP4/8(A). Ayrton Senna has doubts but eventually agrees to stay with McLaren. He wins two of the first five Grand Prix including a stellar victory at Donington Park.
For the sixth Grand Prix of the season in Monaco, the MP4/8 number 6 is attributed to Senna. He knows this difficult circuit where he previously won five times, sharing the prestigious record of Graham Hill.
McLaren no longer has the best car but the skill of its development team to exploit to the extreme the tolerances of the regulations, combined with Senna's legendary motivation, makes it possible to compete with Williams.
During the free practice the McLaren spins at 160 km/h. Senna is safe thanks to the secure design of the McLaren cockpit. The accident was generated by an error in an automatic instruction within the new active suspension. At such a high level, driving is a continuous re-learning even for a pilot as experienced as Senna.
Senna knew to comment on his psychic states. He was very scared. The accident took place on Thursday. Senna continues with the same car that has not been damaged. On Sunday he had mentally integrated the consequences of the accident and wins for the sixth time in his career the Monaco Grand Prix.
He drives the car in six further Grand Prix but without a win. Alain Prost is the 1993 world champion with Williams-Renault.
The MP4/8A-6 has remained authentic including the engine and gearbox of its victory in Monaco. It returns to the Principality to be sold on May 11 by Bonhams, lot 119.
The image of this car driven by Senna at Hockenheim is shared by Wikimedia with attribution : By Runmatze~commonswiki / Landmensch [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], from Wikimedia Commons
1993 The Small Empty Canoes of Peter Doig
2009 SOLD 4.6 M$ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
A few days ago, I expressed that the American Richard Diebenkorn, painter of atmospheres, was constantly moving between figuration and abstraction. We turn now to the next generation, with the British Peter Doig.
In London on 7 February 2007, Sotheby's recorded the exceptional bid of £ 5.7 million fees included for White Canoe, an oil on canvas dated 1990-1991, 2 x 2.4 m, which had been estimated 800 K £. In the middle of colored spots at the center of the image, a small white canoe, very bright, and its reflection are standing out. When inspecting this strong point, the spots take a form to show us a river landscape. The canoe is empty, dehumanizing the subject.
The painting at Christie's, for sale on May 13 in New York, is titled Night Fishing. The canoe in the center of a landscape of estuary or sea shore merges with its surroundings. We want to see it better, and so its presence is strengthened. We imagine the silhouette of two fishermen.
Painted in 1993, this work of 2 x 2.5 m is estimated $ 3 million.
POST SALE COMMENT
This lot is exciting. Sold $ 4.6 million premium included, this painting fetches an intermediate price between the conservative estimate of Christie's and the unexpected result obtained by Sotheby's in 2007.
A few days ago, I expressed that the American Richard Diebenkorn, painter of atmospheres, was constantly moving between figuration and abstraction. We turn now to the next generation, with the British Peter Doig.
In London on 7 February 2007, Sotheby's recorded the exceptional bid of £ 5.7 million fees included for White Canoe, an oil on canvas dated 1990-1991, 2 x 2.4 m, which had been estimated 800 K £. In the middle of colored spots at the center of the image, a small white canoe, very bright, and its reflection are standing out. When inspecting this strong point, the spots take a form to show us a river landscape. The canoe is empty, dehumanizing the subject.
The painting at Christie's, for sale on May 13 in New York, is titled Night Fishing. The canoe in the center of a landscape of estuary or sea shore merges with its surroundings. We want to see it better, and so its presence is strengthened. We imagine the silhouette of two fishermen.
Painted in 1993, this work of 2 x 2.5 m is estimated $ 3 million.
POST SALE COMMENT
This lot is exciting. Sold $ 4.6 million premium included, this painting fetches an intermediate price between the conservative estimate of Christie's and the unexpected result obtained by Sotheby's in 2007.
1993 Bloodline Mother and Son by Zhang Xiaogang
2021 SOLD for HK$ 33.5M by Sotheby's
SOLD by Sotheby's on April 19, 2021 for HK $ 33.5M, lot 1116.
1993 The Shaved Heads of Fang Lijun
2012 SOLD for HK$ 28.7M by Sotheby's
After the Tiananmen crisis, young Chinese artists feel that a new era is beginning. Without abandoning typical Chinese themes, they know that an international recognition of their art is now possible. The exhibition "Passage to the East" at the Venice Biennale in 1993 is the catalyst.
It is interesting to note the role attributed to their humble environment by these creators who endeavour to express the new China. There was Yan Pei-Ming, working in France. Zhang Xiaogang, of course. And Zeng Fanzhi, who is known of often hiding himself in his series of masks, started the following year.
Fang Lijun also considers familiar faces. He shaves the heads of men to better express their feelings and hopes. In 1993, suddenly, he dares to use pure colors. The gaudy blue sky, the flowers, the aerial attitudes make him a modern Chagall.
The acrylic on canvas 180 x 230 cm was created specifically for the biennale but has not been exhibited. The dominant figure is that of the artist's father, got rid of his hair !
It was sold twice by Sotheby's, for HK $ 28.7M on April 2, 2012, lot 816, and for HK $ 24.4M on April 19, 2021, lot 1117.
It is interesting to note the role attributed to their humble environment by these creators who endeavour to express the new China. There was Yan Pei-Ming, working in France. Zhang Xiaogang, of course. And Zeng Fanzhi, who is known of often hiding himself in his series of masks, started the following year.
Fang Lijun also considers familiar faces. He shaves the heads of men to better express their feelings and hopes. In 1993, suddenly, he dares to use pure colors. The gaudy blue sky, the flowers, the aerial attitudes make him a modern Chagall.
The acrylic on canvas 180 x 230 cm was created specifically for the biennale but has not been exhibited. The dominant figure is that of the artist's father, got rid of his hair !
It was sold twice by Sotheby's, for HK $ 28.7M on April 2, 2012, lot 816, and for HK $ 24.4M on April 19, 2021, lot 1117.
1993 Redemption by Durga
2018 SOLD for INR 20.5 crores including premium
During his immersion in the traditional culture of India at Santiniketan from 1983 to 1985, Tyeb Mehta transposes the epic deities into the contemporary world. His reprobation of violence becomes more effective. Faced with the decay of the notions of good and evil, India would need a return of Kali and Durga.
The racial and social riots that began in Mumbai at the end of 1992 and the very deadly attacks of March 1993 unfortunately give him reason. A client commissions him for an image of Durga Mahishasura Mardini, meaning Durga killer of the buffalo demon Mahishasura.
This acrylic on canvas 150 x 105 cm painted in 1993 is a masterpiece of the artist by the intense psychological relationship between the victorious woman and the dying beast, stronger than his desperate body-to-body fights and his endless falls. It is estimated INR 20 crores for sale by Sotheby's in Mumbai on November 29, lot 23. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The buffalo is on the ground, offering its throat to the fatal blow prepared by the goddess with her arrow. It is not so simple. In mythology the monster makes incessant metamorphoses between his bestial and human forms. The imploring human hand raised on his right side belongs to him. Despite his filthy history he also deserves pity, like the ox at the slaughterhouse.
Durga is recognizable by her four arms that symbolize her omnipotence. She won the fight because it was absolutely necessary to do it but her expression is sad, as if she already knew that the death of the buffalo will not be enough for the redemption of modern India.
In his signature style, Tyeb executed a sharp line drawing around monochrome flat areas. He uses here the colors of the national flag as Miro had done in Spain against Franco in 1938. The monster is dark green, its additional arm is saffron and the bare skin of the goddess is almost white.
The racial and social riots that began in Mumbai at the end of 1992 and the very deadly attacks of March 1993 unfortunately give him reason. A client commissions him for an image of Durga Mahishasura Mardini, meaning Durga killer of the buffalo demon Mahishasura.
This acrylic on canvas 150 x 105 cm painted in 1993 is a masterpiece of the artist by the intense psychological relationship between the victorious woman and the dying beast, stronger than his desperate body-to-body fights and his endless falls. It is estimated INR 20 crores for sale by Sotheby's in Mumbai on November 29, lot 23. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The buffalo is on the ground, offering its throat to the fatal blow prepared by the goddess with her arrow. It is not so simple. In mythology the monster makes incessant metamorphoses between his bestial and human forms. The imploring human hand raised on his right side belongs to him. Despite his filthy history he also deserves pity, like the ox at the slaughterhouse.
Durga is recognizable by her four arms that symbolize her omnipotence. She won the fight because it was absolutely necessary to do it but her expression is sad, as if she already knew that the death of the buffalo will not be enough for the redemption of modern India.
In his signature style, Tyeb executed a sharp line drawing around monochrome flat areas. He uses here the colors of the national flag as Miro had done in Spain against Franco in 1938. The monster is dark green, its additional arm is saffron and the bare skin of the goddess is almost white.
1993 The Digital Code of Parisian Life
2013 SOLD 1.48 M£ including premium
Paris-Montparnasse is the key artwork that opens the major turning point in the career of Andreas Gursky.
Inspired by Bernd and Hilla Becher, he became interested in contemporary architecture. The Immeuble Mouchotte completed in Montparnasse in 1966 is huge with its 18 levels and 750 apartments. It supports the question of the trivialization and dehumanization of modern life, even in Paris.
In 1993, the use of digital techniques in photographic art is new for Gursky. Paris-Montparnasse, 149 x 354 cm, is the result of the mixing of two elementary images.
Compared to conventional photography, the result is amazing. From the left or from the right, the building is endless. Still more important: the perfect alignment of horizontal lines is an unprecedented challenge to the old laws of perspective, a technical feat that is only possible with digital imaging and makes understanding the fascination offered by large later compositions such as Rhein.
Seen from afar, the free or hidden windows constitute some sort of binary grid, which also is well ahead of his time. The visible furnishing and some characters remind us that diversity is still existing despite the uniformity of the living conditions.
A print of Paris-Montparnasse is estimated £ 1M, for sale by Sotheby's in London on October 17. I invite you to play the video shared by the auction house.
POST SALE COMMENT
Good result, £ 1.48M including premium, for this masterpiece by Gursky.
Inspired by Bernd and Hilla Becher, he became interested in contemporary architecture. The Immeuble Mouchotte completed in Montparnasse in 1966 is huge with its 18 levels and 750 apartments. It supports the question of the trivialization and dehumanization of modern life, even in Paris.
In 1993, the use of digital techniques in photographic art is new for Gursky. Paris-Montparnasse, 149 x 354 cm, is the result of the mixing of two elementary images.
Compared to conventional photography, the result is amazing. From the left or from the right, the building is endless. Still more important: the perfect alignment of horizontal lines is an unprecedented challenge to the old laws of perspective, a technical feat that is only possible with digital imaging and makes understanding the fascination offered by large later compositions such as Rhein.
Seen from afar, the free or hidden windows constitute some sort of binary grid, which also is well ahead of his time. The visible furnishing and some characters remind us that diversity is still existing despite the uniformity of the living conditions.
A print of Paris-Montparnasse is estimated £ 1M, for sale by Sotheby's in London on October 17. I invite you to play the video shared by the auction house.
POST SALE COMMENT
Good result, £ 1.48M including premium, for this masterpiece by Gursky.
1993 Conversation with Munoz
2011 SOLD 940 K£ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
Adept of the installation, the sculptor Juan Muñoz is questioning the communication. His characters in papier mâché, polyester or bronze, a little smaller than life, are separated, and the director can dispose them at will. Their use inoutdoor decoration makes them the somehow metaphysical cousins of the Nanas of Saint-Phalle.
Without color or detail, they interact like ghosts, without being able to identify their race, age and time. They are put there by chance, somewhere on our planet, like you and me, and they try to communicate like you and me.
On May 12, 2010, Sotheby's recorded the unexpected result of $ 4.9 million including premium on a Conversation of six bronzes executed in 2001, the year of the premature death of the artist. The figures have a shape of roly-poly toys, or women in crinolines, or pears, or sacks of potatoes : it is left to the viewer to decide it.
Made in 1993, a polyester Conversation is estimated £ 800K, for sale by Sotheby's in London on February 15. This team of three, 1.48 m high, has a gesture of the arms that reflects the artist's intent to identify himself as a narrator.Other installations by Muñoz also include a mirror. It is no coincidence !
POST SALE COMMENT
One of the pleasures of contemporary art is that it is always full of surprises.
The group of three figures which was the subject of my article was sold £ 940K including premium.
The previous lot, which had been estimated £ 600K, has been sold £ 3M including premium. Made by the same artist, it is a more expressive conversation between two figures : an adult is bent for speaking to a child.
Adept of the installation, the sculptor Juan Muñoz is questioning the communication. His characters in papier mâché, polyester or bronze, a little smaller than life, are separated, and the director can dispose them at will. Their use inoutdoor decoration makes them the somehow metaphysical cousins of the Nanas of Saint-Phalle.
Without color or detail, they interact like ghosts, without being able to identify their race, age and time. They are put there by chance, somewhere on our planet, like you and me, and they try to communicate like you and me.
On May 12, 2010, Sotheby's recorded the unexpected result of $ 4.9 million including premium on a Conversation of six bronzes executed in 2001, the year of the premature death of the artist. The figures have a shape of roly-poly toys, or women in crinolines, or pears, or sacks of potatoes : it is left to the viewer to decide it.
Made in 1993, a polyester Conversation is estimated £ 800K, for sale by Sotheby's in London on February 15. This team of three, 1.48 m high, has a gesture of the arms that reflects the artist's intent to identify himself as a narrator.Other installations by Muñoz also include a mirror. It is no coincidence !
POST SALE COMMENT
One of the pleasures of contemporary art is that it is always full of surprises.
The group of three figures which was the subject of my article was sold £ 940K including premium.
The previous lot, which had been estimated £ 600K, has been sold £ 3M including premium. Made by the same artist, it is a more expressive conversation between two figures : an adult is bent for speaking to a child.
