Midi (views in South France)
1885 Colors over Marseille
2015 SOLD for £ 13.5M including premium
The impressionist solutions are no longer suitable to Paul Cézanne. He comes back to Provence in 1882 with the aim of expressing the quintessence of the most beautiful Mediterranean landscapes.
L'Estaque is one of his first choices, prompted by memories from his youth when his mother had rented a cottage for summer holidays. From the top of the hill and beyond the houses, the bay and the islands of Marseille offer a vast and sumptuous panorama.
From 1883 to 1886, Cézanne rented a small house in L'Estaque. He works outdoor like the Impressionists, but his synthetic and cloisonné analysis of shapes and colors are already paving the way for modern art and cubism.
On February 4 in London, Christie's sells a view of L'Estaque probably painted in the spring or early summer of 1885. This oil on canvas 73 x 60 cm is estimated £ 8M, lot 8.
For such a panoramic theme, Cézanne has the audacity to try a vertical format. The trees that frame the view while masking the lateral coasts provide the same invitation to the infinite as the future colored rectangles by Mondrian.
At the end of the same decade, Monet himself will fail where Cézanne had already succeeded, in front of light and wind.
L'Estaque is one of his first choices, prompted by memories from his youth when his mother had rented a cottage for summer holidays. From the top of the hill and beyond the houses, the bay and the islands of Marseille offer a vast and sumptuous panorama.
From 1883 to 1886, Cézanne rented a small house in L'Estaque. He works outdoor like the Impressionists, but his synthetic and cloisonné analysis of shapes and colors are already paving the way for modern art and cubism.
On February 4 in London, Christie's sells a view of L'Estaque probably painted in the spring or early summer of 1885. This oil on canvas 73 x 60 cm is estimated £ 8M, lot 8.
For such a panoramic theme, Cézanne has the audacity to try a vertical format. The trees that frame the view while masking the lateral coasts provide the same invitation to the infinite as the future colored rectangles by Mondrian.
At the end of the same decade, Monet himself will fail where Cézanne had already succeeded, in front of light and wind.
1888 The Studio of the South
2015 SOLD for $ 66M including premium
Arrived at Arles in 1888 at the end of winter, Vincent van Gogh engaged with nature in Provence, with the wonderful colors of spring from the hill of Montmajour and the hard summer sun over the works in the fields.
He moved to the maison jaune where he wanted to create a community of artists named by him L'Atelier du Midi. Paul Gauguin arrived as his first guest on 23 October.
A period of fine weather, from October 29 to November 2, allows a first outdoor session. The two artists set their easels in the Alyscamps dominated by the bright yellow of the autumn leaves.
They must come to some understanding. Two of van Gogh paintings include forms within sharp outlines that could appeal to Gauguin. Their very different conceptions of artistic creation begin however to oppose the two artists from that first trials. Gauguin is a cerebral man for whom the achievement must be consistent with the original design, van Gogh is an impulsive wishing that the spontaneous gesture contributes to the artwork.
On May 5 in New York, Sotheby's sells a view of the Alyscamps painted on November 1, 1888, oil on canvas 92 x 74 cm, lot 18. The press release of April 13 is expecting a price in excess of $ 40M.
The composition is geometric, with its perspective view of the allée of trees. The contrast between the warm colors of soil and trees and the cold blue sky make this van Gogh painting resolutely away from the flat colors of Gauguin. The expression is enhanced by the rich shades of the palette. This painting contains the elements that will generate misunderstanding and estrangement between the two great artists.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's. Its image is also shared by Wikimedia.
He moved to the maison jaune where he wanted to create a community of artists named by him L'Atelier du Midi. Paul Gauguin arrived as his first guest on 23 October.
A period of fine weather, from October 29 to November 2, allows a first outdoor session. The two artists set their easels in the Alyscamps dominated by the bright yellow of the autumn leaves.
They must come to some understanding. Two of van Gogh paintings include forms within sharp outlines that could appeal to Gauguin. Their very different conceptions of artistic creation begin however to oppose the two artists from that first trials. Gauguin is a cerebral man for whom the achievement must be consistent with the original design, van Gogh is an impulsive wishing that the spontaneous gesture contributes to the artwork.
On May 5 in New York, Sotheby's sells a view of the Alyscamps painted on November 1, 1888, oil on canvas 92 x 74 cm, lot 18. The press release of April 13 is expecting a price in excess of $ 40M.
The composition is geometric, with its perspective view of the allée of trees. The contrast between the warm colors of soil and trees and the cold blue sky make this van Gogh painting resolutely away from the flat colors of Gauguin. The expression is enhanced by the rich shades of the palette. This painting contains the elements that will generate misunderstanding and estrangement between the two great artists.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's. Its image is also shared by Wikimedia.
1889 The Field beyond the Window
2017 SOLD for $ 81M including premium
On May 8, 1889 Vincent van Gogh enters the asylum for insanes of Dr. Peyron in Saint-Rémy de Provence. Rightly considered as dangerous for himself, he is not allowed to walk outside but a small workshop is attributed to him. In this narrow universe Vincent interprets the works of other artists and looks beyond the window through the thick bars.
On June 18, Vincent paints La Nuit étoilée in which the stars are transformed into whirlwinds of fire. Anxious about the loss of control of his mental health, Vincent believes being appeased by the energy of his hallucination. Doctors fear another major crisis. They are right : it happens in mid-July.
Supervised by the doctors, Vincent does not paint during his crises. He takes his brushes again in the last days of August. The window of his room looks to the east. The sun rising above the wheat field is blinding and hypnotic, and also reveals the bright colors that constitute the soil. The colors are intermingled like swirls, scars and tongues of fire with an extreme violence.
This oil on canvas 50 x 65 cm is titled Laboureur dans un champ. The man, the horse and the plow in mid-distance against the light offer a new opus of the favorite theme of Vincent's career, a result of his lifelong empathy with the soil workers.
Healing through hard work that released his impulses was only an illusion but it produced unprecedented masterpieces. The next crisis comes in December.
Laboureur dans un champ will be sold as lot 28 A by Christie's in New York on November 13. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image below is shared by Wikimedia.
On June 18, Vincent paints La Nuit étoilée in which the stars are transformed into whirlwinds of fire. Anxious about the loss of control of his mental health, Vincent believes being appeased by the energy of his hallucination. Doctors fear another major crisis. They are right : it happens in mid-July.
Supervised by the doctors, Vincent does not paint during his crises. He takes his brushes again in the last days of August. The window of his room looks to the east. The sun rising above the wheat field is blinding and hypnotic, and also reveals the bright colors that constitute the soil. The colors are intermingled like swirls, scars and tongues of fire with an extreme violence.
This oil on canvas 50 x 65 cm is titled Laboureur dans un champ. The man, the horse and the plow in mid-distance against the light offer a new opus of the favorite theme of Vincent's career, a result of his lifelong empathy with the soil workers.
Healing through hard work that released his impulses was only an illusion but it produced unprecedented masterpieces. The next crisis comes in December.
Laboureur dans un champ will be sold as lot 28 A by Christie's in New York on November 13. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image below is shared by Wikimedia.
1889 Threats on Arles
2015 SOLD for $ 54M including premium
Vincent van Gogh arrived in Arles in February 1888. He decided to stay there, charmed by the beauty of the surrounding countryside. His paintings of blooming orchards are joyous.
His mental health had always been fragile. The tension in his relationship with Gauguin rushed his delirious crises requiring his internment in psychiatric hospitals. His anguished questioning about the unknown cause of his illness worsens his condition. He cannot work during his crises.
On November 5 in New York, Sotheby's sells Paysage sous un ciel mouvementé, oil on canvas 60 x 74 cm, lot 14 estimated $ 50M. This artwork was made in mid-April 1889 within a very short period of lull that allowed him again to paint outdoors. This insignificant countryside surrounding Arles cannot be located with more accuracy.
That new spring looked very different to him from that of the previous year. The flowery meadow that occupies the foreground is not welcoming although a little character is coming to pick flowers. It is well lit but not sunny. The trees are twisted off by the wind.
The clouds are processed in a thick impasto involving all shades of gray, with a great violence that anticipates the whirlpools in the starry sky of the following months. This tormented painting is already attesting the fatal drift of his genius into dementia.
His mental health had always been fragile. The tension in his relationship with Gauguin rushed his delirious crises requiring his internment in psychiatric hospitals. His anguished questioning about the unknown cause of his illness worsens his condition. He cannot work during his crises.
On November 5 in New York, Sotheby's sells Paysage sous un ciel mouvementé, oil on canvas 60 x 74 cm, lot 14 estimated $ 50M. This artwork was made in mid-April 1889 within a very short period of lull that allowed him again to paint outdoors. This insignificant countryside surrounding Arles cannot be located with more accuracy.
That new spring looked very different to him from that of the previous year. The flowery meadow that occupies the foreground is not welcoming although a little character is coming to pick flowers. It is well lit but not sunny. The trees are twisted off by the wind.
The clouds are processed in a thick impasto involving all shades of gray, with a great violence that anticipates the whirlpools in the starry sky of the following months. This tormented painting is already attesting the fatal drift of his genius into dementia.
Discover the unique connoisseurship of Evelyn and Louis Franck #VanGogh http://t.co/phe5dtq0Lp pic.twitter.com/FAiGFBbBim
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) October 14, 20151889 Van Gogh excited by the Light of Provence
2012 SOLD 10.1 M£ including premium
Excited by artistic creation, Vincent wants to synthesize the best trends in art but something is still lacking for him to become the greatest artist of his time. In February 1888, he left Paris, attracted like a magnet by the light of the country of Cézanne, Provence.
He was right. The day of his arrival, he finds Arles in the snow, with an extraordinary light. The end of his short life will be an uninterrupted series of tragic events marked by a creative frenzy unparalleled in the history of art.
We could endlessly discuss whether art made him mad or madness made him great. Both statements are probably true. His long stay in the asylum at St-Rémy did not stop his work, it was quite the contrary indeed. Considered as a dangerous patient and thus limited in his moves, he paints what he sees.
A field, a tree, the sky become the major figures of his vision, with a role similar to that of Monet's nympheas a few years later. The light creates color harmonies, through which Vincent enters into communion with the Earth. The forms can be distorted because they are no longer outstanding. Like for Monet, the details become abstract.
Painted in the autumn of 1889, the oil on canvas, 45 x 60 cm, from Liz Taylor's collection is estimated £ 5M, for sale on February 7 by Christie's in London. Here is the link to the catalog.
This is an overview of the buildings of the asylum, in a gentle stylized realism. The swirling textures of the sky and trees show the way to the masterpieces of Auvers, and in the whole lower part of the image the tangle of colors of the hay is already foreshadowing the colorists of the following century.
POST SALE COMMENT
Elizabeth Taylor had in her collection an outstanding painting of the best period of Van Gogh. The result, £ 10.1 million including premium, is not simply due to the provenance.
The image is shared by Christie's on Pinterest :
He was right. The day of his arrival, he finds Arles in the snow, with an extraordinary light. The end of his short life will be an uninterrupted series of tragic events marked by a creative frenzy unparalleled in the history of art.
We could endlessly discuss whether art made him mad or madness made him great. Both statements are probably true. His long stay in the asylum at St-Rémy did not stop his work, it was quite the contrary indeed. Considered as a dangerous patient and thus limited in his moves, he paints what he sees.
A field, a tree, the sky become the major figures of his vision, with a role similar to that of Monet's nympheas a few years later. The light creates color harmonies, through which Vincent enters into communion with the Earth. The forms can be distorted because they are no longer outstanding. Like for Monet, the details become abstract.
Painted in the autumn of 1889, the oil on canvas, 45 x 60 cm, from Liz Taylor's collection is estimated £ 5M, for sale on February 7 by Christie's in London. Here is the link to the catalog.
This is an overview of the buildings of the asylum, in a gentle stylized realism. The swirling textures of the sky and trees show the way to the masterpieces of Auvers, and in the whole lower part of the image the tangle of colors of the hay is already foreshadowing the colorists of the following century.
POST SALE COMMENT
Elizabeth Taylor had in her collection an outstanding painting of the best period of Van Gogh. The result, £ 10.1 million including premium, is not simply due to the provenance.
The image is shared by Christie's on Pinterest :
1905 Derain and the Colors of Collioure
2010 SOLD 16.3 M£ including premium
The French Mediterranean coast is renowned for its superb light. Two small ports, St. Tropez and Collioure, were particularly inspiring to young artists for a hundred and thirty years.
During the summer of 1905, Matisse and Derain are resident in Collioure. André Derain is 25 years old. Comparing painting to dynamite, he explodes the colors in his port scenes and views to the sea.
The big question is to decide whether or not to imitate the style of Signac, who preceded the two artists in this small village. Some paintings by Derain, that year, are pointillist while others are not. If he had maintained such creativity for many years, he would be one of the outstanding painters of his time.
With broad points closer to Seurat, some boats in Collioure with nice reflections, 60 x 73 cm, earned $ 14 million including premium at Sotheby's on November 4, 2009.
On June 22 in London, the same house will auction some trees in the countryside, with a small house in the distance. This oil on canvas, 65 x 81 cm, is made with pure color, and again with a strong pointillism that creates a particularly successful light effect. It is estimated £ 9 million, and is illustrated in the press release shared by AuctionPublicity.
The painting, that had belonged to Vollard, is fresh on the market, after having been forgotten in a bank vault because of the tragedies of the Second World War.
POST SALE COMMENT
The pieces which are fresh on the market have always an advantage. This painting made in Derain's best year was sold £ 16.3 million including premium.
During the summer of 1905, Matisse and Derain are resident in Collioure. André Derain is 25 years old. Comparing painting to dynamite, he explodes the colors in his port scenes and views to the sea.
The big question is to decide whether or not to imitate the style of Signac, who preceded the two artists in this small village. Some paintings by Derain, that year, are pointillist while others are not. If he had maintained such creativity for many years, he would be one of the outstanding painters of his time.
With broad points closer to Seurat, some boats in Collioure with nice reflections, 60 x 73 cm, earned $ 14 million including premium at Sotheby's on November 4, 2009.
On June 22 in London, the same house will auction some trees in the countryside, with a small house in the distance. This oil on canvas, 65 x 81 cm, is made with pure color, and again with a strong pointillism that creates a particularly successful light effect. It is estimated £ 9 million, and is illustrated in the press release shared by AuctionPublicity.
The painting, that had belonged to Vollard, is fresh on the market, after having been forgotten in a bank vault because of the tragedies of the Second World War.
POST SALE COMMENT
The pieces which are fresh on the market have always an advantage. This painting made in Derain's best year was sold £ 16.3 million including premium.
1905 The Collioure Style
2018 SOLD for £ 10.9M including premium
Cézanne's increasingly daring experiments on the pre-eminence of the structure over the line excite the creativity of the young artists. Fauvisme will be a synthesis of the ultimate vision of Cézanne with the pointillisme of Seurat and Signac, enriched by the implacable light of the Midi which had once dazzled Van Gogh.
Vlaminck and Derain share a small workshop in the suburbs of Paris. During the summer of 1905 Matisse invites Derain to spend two months with him in Collioure. They confront their young experiences and work together on the same themes. This season is very prolific : Derain executes about 30 paintings during this short period.
At the beginning of this phase Matisse appears as a continuator to Seurat while using pure colors as Gauguin had done. Derain wants to interpret the blinding sun light without shadow from the middle of the day as Signac had done in Saint-Tropez. Derain excessively increases Seurat's dots until they are re-attributed with figurative forms such as small boats in the harbor.
This synthesis in an unprecedented artistic daring baffles the visitors of the Salon d'Automne. The art critic who utters a horror cry when entering the "Salle des Fauves" was probably in complicity with the artists. Fauvisme is born. It will be ephemeral but its place in the evolution of modern art is extremely important. Losing the reference to Impressionnisme, it ensures a transition between Cézanne and Kandinsky.
Arbres à Collioure 65 x 81 cm painted by Derain with splendid colors was sold for £ 16.3M including premium by Sotheby's on June 22, 2010. By the same artist but closer to Matisse and Seurat, Barques au Port de Collioure 60 x 73 cm was sold for $ 14M including premium on November 4, 2009, also by Sotheby's.
From the same series by Derain, Barques à Collioure, oil on canvas 39 x 46 cm, was sold for £ 5.9M including premium by Christie's on February 9, 2011 and is now estimated £ 7.5M for sale by Sotheby's in London on February 28, lot 11.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
Vlaminck and Derain share a small workshop in the suburbs of Paris. During the summer of 1905 Matisse invites Derain to spend two months with him in Collioure. They confront their young experiences and work together on the same themes. This season is very prolific : Derain executes about 30 paintings during this short period.
At the beginning of this phase Matisse appears as a continuator to Seurat while using pure colors as Gauguin had done. Derain wants to interpret the blinding sun light without shadow from the middle of the day as Signac had done in Saint-Tropez. Derain excessively increases Seurat's dots until they are re-attributed with figurative forms such as small boats in the harbor.
This synthesis in an unprecedented artistic daring baffles the visitors of the Salon d'Automne. The art critic who utters a horror cry when entering the "Salle des Fauves" was probably in complicity with the artists. Fauvisme is born. It will be ephemeral but its place in the evolution of modern art is extremely important. Losing the reference to Impressionnisme, it ensures a transition between Cézanne and Kandinsky.
Arbres à Collioure 65 x 81 cm painted by Derain with splendid colors was sold for £ 16.3M including premium by Sotheby's on June 22, 2010. By the same artist but closer to Matisse and Seurat, Barques au Port de Collioure 60 x 73 cm was sold for $ 14M including premium on November 4, 2009, also by Sotheby's.
From the same series by Derain, Barques à Collioure, oil on canvas 39 x 46 cm, was sold for £ 5.9M including premium by Christie's on February 9, 2011 and is now estimated £ 7.5M for sale by Sotheby's in London on February 28, lot 11.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
1907 The Fauvist Enthusiasm of Georges Braque
2013 SOLD 16 M$ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
The Fauvist revolution of 1905 is due to the enthusiastic response of very young artists. Besides Matisse, most of them are less than thirty years old. Their invention of the primacy of color over all other elements of the painting opens up anew language.
Georges Braque was excited by the Salle des Fauves. Like many others, he sought inspiration in the shining light of the hills of Provence. More than the others, he painted his feeling in front of the landscape rather than the landscape itself.
The twisted trunks of olive trees are an excuse to get rid of verticality. An oil on canvas painted in 1907, 38 x 46 cm, perhaps inspired by the art of Van Gogh, was sold for £ 5.1 million including premium by Sotheby's on 8 February 2012.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells a view of the countryside near La Ciotat, also painted in 1907. This oil on canvas, 51 x 62 cm, is estimated $ 10M. Here is the link to the catalog.
The artwork is located, but the landscape is barely recognizable. Provence is more strongly evoked by the colors in thelight than by the mountainous horizon and the indefinable trees.
This synthesis of Cézanne's texture and Derain's light relies on well balanced shapes, close to a child's drawing. Later, cubism will reveal the appeal of geometry to Braque. He could have been one of the great inventors of modern art but his Fauvist pulse was too short. The place was still left open for the theories of Kandinsky in Murnau in 1909.
POST SALE COMMENT
The Fauvist landscapes by Braque are very rare, and the composition of this one is of high originality. It deserved $ 16 million including premium.
The Fauvist revolution of 1905 is due to the enthusiastic response of very young artists. Besides Matisse, most of them are less than thirty years old. Their invention of the primacy of color over all other elements of the painting opens up anew language.
Georges Braque was excited by the Salle des Fauves. Like many others, he sought inspiration in the shining light of the hills of Provence. More than the others, he painted his feeling in front of the landscape rather than the landscape itself.
The twisted trunks of olive trees are an excuse to get rid of verticality. An oil on canvas painted in 1907, 38 x 46 cm, perhaps inspired by the art of Van Gogh, was sold for £ 5.1 million including premium by Sotheby's on 8 February 2012.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells a view of the countryside near La Ciotat, also painted in 1907. This oil on canvas, 51 x 62 cm, is estimated $ 10M. Here is the link to the catalog.
The artwork is located, but the landscape is barely recognizable. Provence is more strongly evoked by the colors in thelight than by the mountainous horizon and the indefinable trees.
This synthesis of Cézanne's texture and Derain's light relies on well balanced shapes, close to a child's drawing. Later, cubism will reveal the appeal of geometry to Braque. He could have been one of the great inventors of modern art but his Fauvist pulse was too short. The place was still left open for the theories of Kandinsky in Murnau in 1909.
POST SALE COMMENT
The Fauvist landscapes by Braque are very rare, and the composition of this one is of high originality. It deserved $ 16 million including premium.
1921 Two Young Women on the Balcony
2017 SOLD for $ 16.6M including premium
Henri Matisse is captivated by the light of Nice. In 1921 he does not yet have a permanent residence in that city. He spends several months at the Hôtel Méditerranée and works in his room where a large French window overlooks the Promenade des Anglais and the Baie des Anges.
On November 13 in New York, Christie's sells Les Régates de Nice, oil on canvas 81 x 65 cm painted in spring 1921, lot 18 Aestimated $ 12M.
According to the taste of the artist, this painting is well balanced both as an interior and exterior scene with the pleasant colors of the Midi, from the vase of flowers on the table to the small white sails of the regatta on the deep blue sea.
Two quiet young women enliven this intimate scene. Standing in the window, the very young Henriette is the new favorite model of the artist, succeeding in this role to Antoinette who is pregnant. She looks at the sea. Her long skirt and her hair cut in the bowl are typical of the fashion of the roaring twenties.
From the beginning of their collaboration the friendship is deep between the nice Henriette and the Matisse family. The other woman on the balcony is Marguerite, Henri's daughter, less visible, curled up in a large armchair because of her fragile health.
On November 13 in New York, Christie's sells Les Régates de Nice, oil on canvas 81 x 65 cm painted in spring 1921, lot 18 Aestimated $ 12M.
According to the taste of the artist, this painting is well balanced both as an interior and exterior scene with the pleasant colors of the Midi, from the vase of flowers on the table to the small white sails of the regatta on the deep blue sea.
Two quiet young women enliven this intimate scene. Standing in the window, the very young Henriette is the new favorite model of the artist, succeeding in this role to Antoinette who is pregnant. She looks at the sea. Her long skirt and her hair cut in the bowl are typical of the fashion of the roaring twenties.
From the beginning of their collaboration the friendship is deep between the nice Henriette and the Matisse family. The other woman on the balcony is Marguerite, Henri's daughter, less visible, curled up in a large armchair because of her fragile health.
1924 Henriette in the Studio
2014 SOLD 19.2 M$ including premium
After devoting his efforts to lead the avant-gardes, Matisse sought to develop an art altogether more emotional and more decorative. He needs a quieter life. He knows that he will meet this purpose in Nice, where he set up his studio permanently in 1921.
The war also had left its mark. This is the period of the come back of Matisse, Picasso, Derain, Vlaminck to classic styles. Matisse focuses on the theme of the timeless woman, in the nude and as an odalisque.
Picasso works mostly by imagination, but Matisse paints from nature. He gets as a model and assistant a young woman with perfect curves and proportions, Henriette Darricarrère, who works with him from 1920 to 1927. She loved music and art and Matisse encouraged her artistic talents.
This happy period of creation in the beautiful light of the Côte d' Azur has the effect of making the art of Matisse loved by the public who ever prefers simple drawings and bright colors and does not reject the use of visible geometric patterns.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells La séance du matin (the morning session), oil on canvas 74 x 61 cm painted in 1924, lot 8 of the catalog, estimated $ 20M.
Henriette busy to paint is dutifully sitting in front of another chair used as an easel. She turns her back to the window through which the clear blue of the sky and the bright blue of the Mediterranea can be seen. Her garment that is undoubtedly a night dress has vertical stripes that clash with the louvered window shutter, creating the strong point of the composition and drawing the attention to the character.
POST SALE COMMENT
The estimate has not been reached. This painting was sold for $ 19.2 million including premium.
The war also had left its mark. This is the period of the come back of Matisse, Picasso, Derain, Vlaminck to classic styles. Matisse focuses on the theme of the timeless woman, in the nude and as an odalisque.
Picasso works mostly by imagination, but Matisse paints from nature. He gets as a model and assistant a young woman with perfect curves and proportions, Henriette Darricarrère, who works with him from 1920 to 1927. She loved music and art and Matisse encouraged her artistic talents.
This happy period of creation in the beautiful light of the Côte d' Azur has the effect of making the art of Matisse loved by the public who ever prefers simple drawings and bright colors and does not reject the use of visible geometric patterns.
On May 7 in New York, Sotheby's sells La séance du matin (the morning session), oil on canvas 74 x 61 cm painted in 1924, lot 8 of the catalog, estimated $ 20M.
Henriette busy to paint is dutifully sitting in front of another chair used as an easel. She turns her back to the window through which the clear blue of the sky and the bright blue of the Mediterranea can be seen. Her garment that is undoubtedly a night dress has vertical stripes that clash with the louvered window shutter, creating the strong point of the composition and drawing the attention to the character.
POST SALE COMMENT
The estimate has not been reached. This painting was sold for $ 19.2 million including premium.
