1994
1994 Benefits Supervisor Resting by Freud
2015 SOLD for $ 56M by Christie's
Relying on his knowledge of art history, Lucian Freud is not like everyone else. His considerations on others are not based on the expression of faces or attitudes but on the smallest details of entirely naked bodies, male and female, which he observes endlessly like a zoologist who has to describe a rare specimen.
Leigh Bowery has been one of his male models since 1988. Leigh is a post-punk dancer, stylist and creator of night clubs. He outrageously exhibits his homosexuality with exuberant make-up, high heels and latex body tights.
In 1990 Leigh invites Lucian to meet Sue Tilley who is benefits supervisor in an employment agency and cashier of one of his clubs in Piccadilly. Sue is 33 years old and weighs about 137 kg. She is an interesting specimen : Lucian considers that her flesh without muscle has generated an unusual texture of the skin, of which he observes all the folds and shadows. In real life her obesity is less visible because the body is held by her clothing.
The first painting had been done in 1993. Sue was lying naked on the floor. Lucian appreciates that this uncomfortable position is not conducive for achieving his goal. He will set a sofa on which Sue can now keep and retrieve a serene position. The repetitive sitting sessions occupy every Saturday and Sunday and sometimes more for several months in a row. The small precise movement of the brush follows a systematic observation of the model, without impulse or emotion, for many hours.
Freud used Sue's professional occupation as a nickname. The second painting, Benefits Supervisor resting, was executed in 1994. This oil on canvas 151 x 161 cm was sold for $ 56M from a lower estimate of $ 30M by Christie's on May 13, 2015, lot 31B. The artist has succeeded. The body is the only subject of this nude painting The folded legs accentuate the swellings. The head thrown backwards has no other role than to ensure the stability of the attitude.
Leigh Bowery has been one of his male models since 1988. Leigh is a post-punk dancer, stylist and creator of night clubs. He outrageously exhibits his homosexuality with exuberant make-up, high heels and latex body tights.
In 1990 Leigh invites Lucian to meet Sue Tilley who is benefits supervisor in an employment agency and cashier of one of his clubs in Piccadilly. Sue is 33 years old and weighs about 137 kg. She is an interesting specimen : Lucian considers that her flesh without muscle has generated an unusual texture of the skin, of which he observes all the folds and shadows. In real life her obesity is less visible because the body is held by her clothing.
The first painting had been done in 1993. Sue was lying naked on the floor. Lucian appreciates that this uncomfortable position is not conducive for achieving his goal. He will set a sofa on which Sue can now keep and retrieve a serene position. The repetitive sitting sessions occupy every Saturday and Sunday and sometimes more for several months in a row. The small precise movement of the brush follows a systematic observation of the model, without impulse or emotion, for many hours.
Freud used Sue's professional occupation as a nickname. The second painting, Benefits Supervisor resting, was executed in 1994. This oil on canvas 151 x 161 cm was sold for $ 56M from a lower estimate of $ 30M by Christie's on May 13, 2015, lot 31B. The artist has succeeded. The body is the only subject of this nude painting The folded legs accentuate the swellings. The head thrown backwards has no other role than to ensure the stability of the attitude.
1994 Intimate Music
2020 SOLD for $ 46M including premium
Roy Lichtenstein appropriates images edited or painted by others. By transforming them, he brings another meaning that can be the opposite. The enlargement from a comic maintains the simplicity of the lines which was important for the legibility of the tiny original. He reaches the basics of art, without verbiage and without losing his humor.
Roy also offers his vision of art history. He likes the pure lines of the naked bodies in La Danse by Matisse. Painted in 1974, Artist's Studio - The Dance exhibits that masterpiece of the other artist on the back wall, behind a big mess. On the right side, a truncated image shows some musical notes on a stave.
In 1994 Roy restarts one of his signature themes : the young woman copied from a comic panel, colored with dots that mimic printing patterns. Henceforth the woman is nude, sometimes in the presence of another naked woman, never with a man.
On July 10 in New York, Christie's sells as lot 58 Nude with Joyous Painting, oil and acrylic 178 x 135 cm painted in 1994. The press release of May 15 announces an estimate in the region of $ 30M. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
In the comic book, the pretty blonde had a love sorrow. Now she is naked and the explanatory text is no longer available : she is simply waiting for something undefined which is probably not a partner. She may be finishing her washing after putting a headband.
The joyous painting announced by the title is the image of a musical stave in volutes, as in the pastiche of La Danse. This musical symbol brings a nice atmosphere of innocent intimacy.
Roy also offers his vision of art history. He likes the pure lines of the naked bodies in La Danse by Matisse. Painted in 1974, Artist's Studio - The Dance exhibits that masterpiece of the other artist on the back wall, behind a big mess. On the right side, a truncated image shows some musical notes on a stave.
In 1994 Roy restarts one of his signature themes : the young woman copied from a comic panel, colored with dots that mimic printing patterns. Henceforth the woman is nude, sometimes in the presence of another naked woman, never with a man.
On July 10 in New York, Christie's sells as lot 58 Nude with Joyous Painting, oil and acrylic 178 x 135 cm painted in 1994. The press release of May 15 announces an estimate in the region of $ 30M. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
In the comic book, the pretty blonde had a love sorrow. Now she is naked and the explanatory text is no longer available : she is simply waiting for something undefined which is probably not a partner. She may be finishing her washing after putting a headband.
The joyous painting announced by the title is the image of a musical stave in volutes, as in the pastiche of La Danse. This musical symbol brings a nice atmosphere of innocent intimacy.
1994 RICHTER
1
806 Wand
2014 SOLD for £ 17.5M by Sotheby's
1994 is a great year for the creativity of Gerhard Richter who has a full control for blending the most spectacular colors. Many of his works often in a large size have a number per series with the generic title of Abstraktes Bild.
Richter provides to the viewer a completely abstract art that can however give an illusion of depth, life or landscape. 809-4 was sold for £ 21.3 million including premium by Sotheby's on October 12, 2012.
On February 12 in London, Sotheby's sells the opus 806, oil on square canvas 240 x 240 cm, lot 12 in the catalog.
806 is a notable exception in the recent production of Richter. It is unique and not an element in a series and its title, Wand ( the wall) addresses some return toward figuration.
Wand is a very clever overlay of two themes. The wall is a set of equidistant vertical lines forming a parquetry, with some darker streakings. The other element is a conversation of red, blue and magenta in a disposition that irresistibly evokes Rothko.
The parqueted boards give the actual distance to the canvas while the mirage of Rothko can be imagined either forward or behind the wall. This painting was judged exemplary by the artist who kept it until 2010.
Despite its date and the taste of Richter for allusions to history, Wand is probably not related to the Berlin Wall.
The press release of January 16 announces an estimate beyond £ 15M.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's.
POST SALE COMMENT
Wand was sold for £ 17.5M including premium, in line with the expectations.
The low resolution image below is shared by Wikimedia for fair use :
Richter provides to the viewer a completely abstract art that can however give an illusion of depth, life or landscape. 809-4 was sold for £ 21.3 million including premium by Sotheby's on October 12, 2012.
On February 12 in London, Sotheby's sells the opus 806, oil on square canvas 240 x 240 cm, lot 12 in the catalog.
806 is a notable exception in the recent production of Richter. It is unique and not an element in a series and its title, Wand ( the wall) addresses some return toward figuration.
Wand is a very clever overlay of two themes. The wall is a set of equidistant vertical lines forming a parquetry, with some darker streakings. The other element is a conversation of red, blue and magenta in a disposition that irresistibly evokes Rothko.
The parqueted boards give the actual distance to the canvas while the mirage of Rothko can be imagined either forward or behind the wall. This painting was judged exemplary by the artist who kept it until 2010.
Despite its date and the taste of Richter for allusions to history, Wand is probably not related to the Berlin Wall.
The press release of January 16 announces an estimate beyond £ 15M.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's.
POST SALE COMMENT
Wand was sold for £ 17.5M including premium, in line with the expectations.
The low resolution image below is shared by Wikimedia for fair use :
2
AB 809-4
2022 SOLD for $ 36.5M by Christie's
The Abstraktes Bild 809-4 was sold for £ 21.3M by Sotheby's on October 12, 2012, lot 15, and for $ 36.5M by Christie's on May 10, 2022, lot 8 B.
This oil on canvas 225 x 200 cm was painted in 1994 in the period of greater maturity in the abstract art of Gerhard Richter, when his technique of squeegee was fully developed.
With always different and often subtle colors, the horizontal movement of the rake comes in opposition with large vertical streaks. However, the shock of colors is not actually geometric or cleverly dispositioned or allusive of forms. Richter renewed the abstract art without imitating Rothko, or Zao Wou-ki, or Still, and Pollock not either.
Richter's magic is to provide an impression of spontaneity in paintings extensively worked until reaching the emotion intended by the artist. The wording proposed in Sotheby's catalogue of an "exuberant cacophony" is not enough. For the balance of colors and shapes, Richter has indeed the absolute eye.
The abstract world of Richter is the chaos of current time. Musicians enjoy Richter as they enjoy Basquiat. In 2012, 809-4 had been brought to auction by Eric Clapton.
This oil on canvas 225 x 200 cm was painted in 1994 in the period of greater maturity in the abstract art of Gerhard Richter, when his technique of squeegee was fully developed.
With always different and often subtle colors, the horizontal movement of the rake comes in opposition with large vertical streaks. However, the shock of colors is not actually geometric or cleverly dispositioned or allusive of forms. Richter renewed the abstract art without imitating Rothko, or Zao Wou-ki, or Still, and Pollock not either.
Richter's magic is to provide an impression of spontaneity in paintings extensively worked until reaching the emotion intended by the artist. The wording proposed in Sotheby's catalogue of an "exuberant cacophony" is not enough. For the balance of colors and shapes, Richter has indeed the absolute eye.
The abstract world of Richter is the chaos of current time. Musicians enjoy Richter as they enjoy Basquiat. In 2012, 809-4 had been brought to auction by Eric Clapton.
3
AB 809-2
2016 SOLD for $ 22M by Christie's
The creative burst of Willem de Kooning at Long Island in the late 1970s opened a new way, exciting but difficult, to abstract art, evoking sceneries without offering a figuration. Although no direct link appears between them, Gerhard Richter continues and complicates this approach.
The thread in the art of Richter is the perception. With a whole range of colors, he structures the picture to capture and keep the viewer's attention. Sensory interpretations of the same artwork can be very different from one person to another. The retinal differentiation in color vision provides the depth. Horizontal, vertical and sometimes oblique areas create the rhythm.
This trend reached its peak in the 1990s. Richter's painting is a total art that may claim a legacy both from Monet and from Bach.
The opus 809 is a series of four oils on canvas 225 x 200 cm painted in 1994. The colors are varied from one painting to another and an interpretation as a collection of landscapes is possible. A musical intention is equally plausible. 'Bach', painted in 1992, also brought together four elements.
There is no doubt that Richter infuses his creativity with musical impressions throughout this phase. 'Cage' is a set of six elements painted in 2006. Remaining cautious against the mystical impulses of Rothko, Richter appropriates the profession of faith of John Cage : "I have nothing to say and I am saying it".
809-3 belongs jointly to the Tate and to the National Galleries of Scotland. The other three 809 were purchased at auction in 2001 by Eric Clapton. 809-4 was sold for £ 21.3M including premium by Sotheby's on October 12, 2012. 809-1 was sold for $ 21M including premium by Christie's on November 12, 2013. 809-2 is estimated $ 18M for sale by Christie's in New York on November 15, lot 28 A.
The thread in the art of Richter is the perception. With a whole range of colors, he structures the picture to capture and keep the viewer's attention. Sensory interpretations of the same artwork can be very different from one person to another. The retinal differentiation in color vision provides the depth. Horizontal, vertical and sometimes oblique areas create the rhythm.
This trend reached its peak in the 1990s. Richter's painting is a total art that may claim a legacy both from Monet and from Bach.
The opus 809 is a series of four oils on canvas 225 x 200 cm painted in 1994. The colors are varied from one painting to another and an interpretation as a collection of landscapes is possible. A musical intention is equally plausible. 'Bach', painted in 1992, also brought together four elements.
There is no doubt that Richter infuses his creativity with musical impressions throughout this phase. 'Cage' is a set of six elements painted in 2006. Remaining cautious against the mystical impulses of Rothko, Richter appropriates the profession of faith of John Cage : "I have nothing to say and I am saying it".
809-3 belongs jointly to the Tate and to the National Galleries of Scotland. The other three 809 were purchased at auction in 2001 by Eric Clapton. 809-4 was sold for £ 21.3M including premium by Sotheby's on October 12, 2012. 809-1 was sold for $ 21M including premium by Christie's on November 12, 2013. 809-2 is estimated $ 18M for sale by Christie's in New York on November 15, lot 28 A.
4
AB 809-1
2013 SOLD for $ 21 M by Christie's
After being the master of blurred figuration, Gerhard Richter gradually became the most subtle abstract painter of our time. It may not be contradictory.
With his squeegees and his method of applying new layers while the former were still wet, he is a full colorist. Not only the three primary colors produce the full range of the spectrum, but some secondary colors are also playing a significant role, dark purple being an example.
Richter wanted to push abstract art out of the mystical trend that made the success of American expressionists. Captivated by the magnificence of his work, observers continue to seek a figurative or biomorphic interpretation in the series of Abstraktes Bild, like a ultimate outcome of the blur. Let us do as if they were right.
809 is a series of four oils on canvas, 225 x 200 cm, painted in 1994 when Richter completely mastered his technique. 809-3 is in the Tate Gallery. 809-1 , -2 and -4 were sold as a single lot for $ 3.4 million including premium by Sotheby's on 14 November 2001, purchased by the musician Eric Clapton.
On 12 October 2012, Sotheby's sold 809-4 for £ 21.3 million including premium from a lower estimate of £ 9M. This painting had been described as a sublime cacophony of colors interpreting the chaos of today's world. It is clear that this gain cannot be explained only by the personality of the seller.
On November 12 in New York, Christie's sells 809-1. Primary and secondary colors are the same as in 809-4 but their distribution is completely different and much less violent.
The strident vertical yellow of 809-4 is like sunlight piercing a high forest. The horizontal structures of 809-1 are like a quiet lake closed by a horizon at sunrise or sunset. 809-3 appears like a maritime coastal scenery. 809-2 is the only one in this series that still escapes my reading, perhaps a reflection of a building in water like Monet had done in Venice.
809-1 is in my opinion the most balanced of the four masterpieces. More cautious than me, Christie's does not attempt a figurative interpretation and they do not publish an estimate. I invite you to play the audio shared by the auction house.
POST SALE COMMENT
Unlike my opinion, this Abstraktes Bild is not the best one from the small 809 series. Its price, $ 21M including premium, is consistent with the figures that had circulated.
With his squeegees and his method of applying new layers while the former were still wet, he is a full colorist. Not only the three primary colors produce the full range of the spectrum, but some secondary colors are also playing a significant role, dark purple being an example.
Richter wanted to push abstract art out of the mystical trend that made the success of American expressionists. Captivated by the magnificence of his work, observers continue to seek a figurative or biomorphic interpretation in the series of Abstraktes Bild, like a ultimate outcome of the blur. Let us do as if they were right.
809 is a series of four oils on canvas, 225 x 200 cm, painted in 1994 when Richter completely mastered his technique. 809-3 is in the Tate Gallery. 809-1 , -2 and -4 were sold as a single lot for $ 3.4 million including premium by Sotheby's on 14 November 2001, purchased by the musician Eric Clapton.
On 12 October 2012, Sotheby's sold 809-4 for £ 21.3 million including premium from a lower estimate of £ 9M. This painting had been described as a sublime cacophony of colors interpreting the chaos of today's world. It is clear that this gain cannot be explained only by the personality of the seller.
On November 12 in New York, Christie's sells 809-1. Primary and secondary colors are the same as in 809-4 but their distribution is completely different and much less violent.
The strident vertical yellow of 809-4 is like sunlight piercing a high forest. The horizontal structures of 809-1 are like a quiet lake closed by a horizon at sunrise or sunset. 809-3 appears like a maritime coastal scenery. 809-2 is the only one in this series that still escapes my reading, perhaps a reflection of a building in water like Monet had done in Venice.
809-1 is in my opinion the most balanced of the four masterpieces. More cautious than me, Christie's does not attempt a figurative interpretation and they do not publish an estimate. I invite you to play the audio shared by the auction house.
POST SALE COMMENT
Unlike my opinion, this Abstraktes Bild is not the best one from the small 809 series. Its price, $ 21M including premium, is consistent with the figures that had circulated.
1994 The Privacy of the Modern Woman
2013 SOLD 23.6 M$ including premium
The world has changed in the three previous decades, in 1993, when Roy Lichtenstein focuses on the female nude. This new series of paintings, which unfortunately will be his last, is actually a remarkable synthesis of his career.
The guess by the observer of some relationship between the artist and the model is one of the strongest features in Roy's art. If the woman does not appear to be disturbed in her privacy, It is really a paradox because otherwise how would the artist be able to see her?
Roy had also interpreted the excessive comfort of bourgeois homes. It is logical and ironic that he got the idea to make them enlived by a naked woman.
These canvases of great size, larger than life, are using the technique of the artist with solid and dotted areas. The colors are unimportant on the condition of being bright, only the blond head is realistic.
The drawing is neat, without falling into the provocative eroticism of Wesselmann. Roy relies on previous images of his art improved by removing clothes and modernizing accessories.
The woman with the yellow flower is standing alone, concentrating on her phone call. Does the person on the other end of the line appreciate that she is nude? The heart of the flower is like a question mark. This canvas painted in 1994, 233 x 183 cm, is estimated $ 12M, for sale by Christie's in New York on May 15. Here is the link to the catalog.
On November 14, 2012, over the same lower estimate, Christie's sold $ 28M including premium a nude with a red shirt, 198 x 168 cm, painted in 1995.
POST SALE COMMENT
Compared with the Red shirt sold last year, the estimate was far too reasonable. The art market now welcomes the last paintings by Lichtenstein. The Nude with yellow flower was sold $ 23.6 million including premium.
The guess by the observer of some relationship between the artist and the model is one of the strongest features in Roy's art. If the woman does not appear to be disturbed in her privacy, It is really a paradox because otherwise how would the artist be able to see her?
Roy had also interpreted the excessive comfort of bourgeois homes. It is logical and ironic that he got the idea to make them enlived by a naked woman.
These canvases of great size, larger than life, are using the technique of the artist with solid and dotted areas. The colors are unimportant on the condition of being bright, only the blond head is realistic.
The drawing is neat, without falling into the provocative eroticism of Wesselmann. Roy relies on previous images of his art improved by removing clothes and modernizing accessories.
The woman with the yellow flower is standing alone, concentrating on her phone call. Does the person on the other end of the line appreciate that she is nude? The heart of the flower is like a question mark. This canvas painted in 1994, 233 x 183 cm, is estimated $ 12M, for sale by Christie's in New York on May 15. Here is the link to the catalog.
On November 14, 2012, over the same lower estimate, Christie's sold $ 28M including premium a nude with a red shirt, 198 x 168 cm, painted in 1995.
POST SALE COMMENT
Compared with the Red shirt sold last year, the estimate was far too reasonable. The art market now welcomes the last paintings by Lichtenstein. The Nude with yellow flower was sold $ 23.6 million including premium.
1994 Perfect Pitcher
2021 SOLD for $ 21.5M by Christie's
Roy Lichtenstein used throughout his career to mingle his own themes. His Interiors series, conceived around 1990, enables unprecedented associations.
The basic inspiration is certainly Matisse's L'Atelier Rouge of 1911 displaying all sorts of pictures hanging on the red wall. Lichtenstein adds his own confusion between the direct viewing and the reflection in a mirror. His insertion of artworks in the images enables many references to art history including his favorite artists Picasso and Matisse but also Monet, Calder, Warhol or himself.
Interior with Yves Klein sculpture, oil and acrylic on canvas 305 x 430 cm painted in 1991, was sold for $ 6.7M by Christie's on November 10, 2015, lot 12 B. The sculpture is an IKB sponge. An image on the wall is the portrait of King Henry VIII by Holbein. An antique marble of the Discobolus is totally out of the field excepted the foot plus a hand holding half of the disk.
In 1994 the nude woman is an unprecedented theme in Roy's art. An Interior opus, subtitled Perfect Pitcher, mingles both. This oil and acrylic on canvas 306 x 490 cm was sold for $ 21.5M by Christie's on May 13, 2021, lot 18 B.
In the cozy dressing room furnished with a sectional sofa and two low tables, four pictures are hanging on the walls, in addition to the edge of a tall mirror in the foreground.
The subtitle refers to the image of two pitchers. One of them is the direct copy of a real life artefact placed on a low table and thus cannot be a reflection, and the other is an image within that image within the artwork. It is both a direct reference to Picasso's still lifes and a pun for Perfect Picture. An arrangement of geometric vessels in the taste of Picasso or Morandi hangs beside it. The left wall displays an image of musical notes on waving staves, a feature previously used by Roy in 1974 in a pastiche of Matisse's La Danse.
The fourth illustration is a red haired life size woman seated in an aggressive enticing position. She is not in an extension of the room because her scene has a mirror frame, but it cannot be a mirror because no element from the room is reflected. She is indeed copied from a comic book of the 1960s with the usual Ben-Day dots of the artist.
Nude with joyous painting, also including the musical score, is in the direct follow. This painting 178 x 135 cm was sold for $ 46M by Christie's in 2020.
The basic inspiration is certainly Matisse's L'Atelier Rouge of 1911 displaying all sorts of pictures hanging on the red wall. Lichtenstein adds his own confusion between the direct viewing and the reflection in a mirror. His insertion of artworks in the images enables many references to art history including his favorite artists Picasso and Matisse but also Monet, Calder, Warhol or himself.
Interior with Yves Klein sculpture, oil and acrylic on canvas 305 x 430 cm painted in 1991, was sold for $ 6.7M by Christie's on November 10, 2015, lot 12 B. The sculpture is an IKB sponge. An image on the wall is the portrait of King Henry VIII by Holbein. An antique marble of the Discobolus is totally out of the field excepted the foot plus a hand holding half of the disk.
In 1994 the nude woman is an unprecedented theme in Roy's art. An Interior opus, subtitled Perfect Pitcher, mingles both. This oil and acrylic on canvas 306 x 490 cm was sold for $ 21.5M by Christie's on May 13, 2021, lot 18 B.
In the cozy dressing room furnished with a sectional sofa and two low tables, four pictures are hanging on the walls, in addition to the edge of a tall mirror in the foreground.
The subtitle refers to the image of two pitchers. One of them is the direct copy of a real life artefact placed on a low table and thus cannot be a reflection, and the other is an image within that image within the artwork. It is both a direct reference to Picasso's still lifes and a pun for Perfect Picture. An arrangement of geometric vessels in the taste of Picasso or Morandi hangs beside it. The left wall displays an image of musical notes on waving staves, a feature previously used by Roy in 1974 in a pastiche of Matisse's La Danse.
The fourth illustration is a red haired life size woman seated in an aggressive enticing position. She is not in an extension of the room because her scene has a mirror frame, but it cannot be a mirror because no element from the room is reflected. She is indeed copied from a comic book of the 1960s with the usual Ben-Day dots of the artist.
Nude with joyous painting, also including the musical score, is in the direct follow. This painting 178 x 135 cm was sold for $ 46M by Christie's in 2020.
1994 Attack in a Mirror
2016 SOLD for $ 21.5M including premium
In the early 1960s women find another role to their own bodies. Partially or fully unveiled, it is no more only a call to the sexual partner but a symbol of a new freedom.
In this first phase of his career, Roy Lichtenstein shakes the traditional iconography but does not pay attention to the nude. Three decades later he retrieves his collection of magazines whose sentimental scenes had once served as his models. He now strips these young women in the intimate atmosphere of their modern apartment.
In his rich artistic vocabulary Roy loves to explore the theme of reflection that had inspired Velazquez and Manet before him. Nudes in Mirror, oil and acrylic on canvas 254 x 213 cm painted in 1994, offers troubling angles without indeed needing an erotic attitude.
The mirror occupies the entire field of the canvas and lets see the reflection of the blonde woman to the waist, much larger than life. The artist was an intruder because he occupied the physical position of that woman facing the mirror in the nude. For the same reason the viewer loses his own identity. A wide diagonal bar and a secondary image that may be from the same woman bring an impossible geometry worthy of Escher.
An artist is successful when his work arouses passions. In 2005 Nudes in Mirror was slashed in four large cuts from a screwdriver during an exhibition in Austria. The canvas has been repaired. It is for sale by Phillips in New York on November 16, lot 15. After such a history the estimate is difficult to establish and the auction house did not publish it.
In this first phase of his career, Roy Lichtenstein shakes the traditional iconography but does not pay attention to the nude. Three decades later he retrieves his collection of magazines whose sentimental scenes had once served as his models. He now strips these young women in the intimate atmosphere of their modern apartment.
In his rich artistic vocabulary Roy loves to explore the theme of reflection that had inspired Velazquez and Manet before him. Nudes in Mirror, oil and acrylic on canvas 254 x 213 cm painted in 1994, offers troubling angles without indeed needing an erotic attitude.
The mirror occupies the entire field of the canvas and lets see the reflection of the blonde woman to the waist, much larger than life. The artist was an intruder because he occupied the physical position of that woman facing the mirror in the nude. For the same reason the viewer loses his own identity. A wide diagonal bar and a secondary image that may be from the same woman bring an impossible geometry worthy of Escher.
An artist is successful when his work arouses passions. In 2005 Nudes in Mirror was slashed in four large cuts from a screwdriver during an exhibition in Austria. The canvas has been repaired. It is for sale by Phillips in New York on November 16, lot 15. After such a history the estimate is difficult to establish and the auction house did not publish it.
1994 Pine House by Doig
2014 SOLD for $ 18M by Christie's
Houses can decay, die or even be killed. Peter Doig is fascinated by dead houses in the woods.
He took photographs of a large rooming house for transient workers which had been doomed by a wild fire in the vicinity of Cobourg, the city in Ontario where he grew up.
Coming back a few years later, he found that the dead house has been replaced by a new set of condominiums. It now only remains like a mirage in his memory. Using his photos, he imagines the scenery if the vanished house had been left in place with its sunken roof. The foreground is invaded by a wild vegetation. The scenery is reflected in a frost covered track.
Pine House, subtitled Rooms for Rent, oil on canvas 180 x 230 cm painted in 1994, was sold for $ 18M by Christie's on November 12, 2014, lot 36.
He took photographs of a large rooming house for transient workers which had been doomed by a wild fire in the vicinity of Cobourg, the city in Ontario where he grew up.
Coming back a few years later, he found that the dead house has been replaced by a new set of condominiums. It now only remains like a mirage in his memory. Using his photos, he imagines the scenery if the vanished house had been left in place with its sunken roof. The foreground is invaded by a wild vegetation. The scenery is reflected in a frost covered track.
Pine House, subtitled Rooms for Rent, oil on canvas 180 x 230 cm painted in 1994, was sold for $ 18M by Christie's on November 12, 2014, lot 36.
