Old Flanders and Belgium
See also : Ancient painting Flemish art Rubens Groups Cities Christianity Magritte
Chronology : 17th century 1610-1619 1937 1949 1957 1961
Chronology : 17th century 1610-1619 1937 1949 1957 1961
1610 The Massacre of the Innocents by Rubens
2002 SOLD for £ 50M including premium by Sotheby's
narrated in 2020
When Rubens returned to Antwerp in November 1608, he brought with him the new Baroque trends in Italian art. He exercises his art for the very important commissions from the churches of Antwerp finally liberated from the wars of religion, and also for private clients.
Highly influenced by the art of Caravaggio at that time, Rubens shows heavily emotional scenes, with dynamic and complex compositions, violent lights, bodies twisted by hatred or despair. He uses skinned figures as models for his scary naked soldiers.
Two paintings made for private use at the beginning of this new phase entered together in 1702 in the collection of the princes of Liechtenstein. After a loss of traceability in the inventories of the Liechtenstein collection, the two artworks were later attributed to an assistant from the end of career of Rubens named Jan van den Hoecke.
Samson et Delilah is an oil on wood 185 x 205 cm originally painted for the collection of the Lord Mayor of Antwerp. The theme of the colossus neutralized by the ingenuity of women, staged at the fatal moment, may be compared with the Judith of Caravaggio. The original version was authenticated in 1929 and sold by Christie's on July 11, 1980 for £ 2.53M including premium.
The Massacre of the Innocents (De kindermoord te Bethlehem) was known by a copy kept in Brussels. The version attributed to van den Hoecke is brought for sale to Sotheby's. Comparing this 142 x 182 cm oil on wood with the Samson and Delilah, the expert of the auction house recognizes that he has in his hands the real original by Rubens.
This reattribution is convincing. The Massacre of the Innocents is sold for £ 50M including premium by Sotheby's on July 10, 2002 over a lower estimate of £ 4M. Here is the link to the pre sale press release. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1610 is considered as the most likely year for the creation of this artwork. The background of the image does not show Bethlehem but the temple of Castor and Pollux, proving that Rubens was still dazzled by the beauties of Rome. It has been also considered as a reminiscence from the atrocities of the religious wars. It is undoubtedly a masterpiece by Rubens, in a near perfect condition.
Highly influenced by the art of Caravaggio at that time, Rubens shows heavily emotional scenes, with dynamic and complex compositions, violent lights, bodies twisted by hatred or despair. He uses skinned figures as models for his scary naked soldiers.
Two paintings made for private use at the beginning of this new phase entered together in 1702 in the collection of the princes of Liechtenstein. After a loss of traceability in the inventories of the Liechtenstein collection, the two artworks were later attributed to an assistant from the end of career of Rubens named Jan van den Hoecke.
Samson et Delilah is an oil on wood 185 x 205 cm originally painted for the collection of the Lord Mayor of Antwerp. The theme of the colossus neutralized by the ingenuity of women, staged at the fatal moment, may be compared with the Judith of Caravaggio. The original version was authenticated in 1929 and sold by Christie's on July 11, 1980 for £ 2.53M including premium.
The Massacre of the Innocents (De kindermoord te Bethlehem) was known by a copy kept in Brussels. The version attributed to van den Hoecke is brought for sale to Sotheby's. Comparing this 142 x 182 cm oil on wood with the Samson and Delilah, the expert of the auction house recognizes that he has in his hands the real original by Rubens.
This reattribution is convincing. The Massacre of the Innocents is sold for £ 50M including premium by Sotheby's on July 10, 2002 over a lower estimate of £ 4M. Here is the link to the pre sale press release. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1610 is considered as the most likely year for the creation of this artwork. The background of the image does not show Bethlehem but the temple of Castor and Pollux, proving that Rubens was still dazzled by the beauties of Rome. It has been also considered as a reminiscence from the atrocities of the religious wars. It is undoubtedly a masterpiece by Rubens, in a near perfect condition.
_De_kindermoord_te_Bethlehem_-_Rubenshuis_Antwerpen_27-09-2018.jpg)
1614 Rubens in front of Sodom
2016 SOLD for £ 45M including premium
Peter Paul Rubens was able to achieve the dream of the greatest artists : assimilating the art of his predecessors and going further. He came back from Italy in 1608 and settled in Antwerp, the city of his childhood. Peace has returned and the time is conducive to art. Aristocratic and religious commissions flow.
In Italy, Rubens had admired Titian. In the north, he sees the increasingly risqué themes by Goltzius and Wtewael. Taboos fall : Bible and mythology offer erotic stories through moral excuses.
On July 7 in London, Christie's sells as lot 12 Lot and his daughters, oil on canvas 190 x 225 cm painted by Rubens circa 1614. This painting is a rediscovery : it had not been seen since a failed attempt of sale in 1904 and 1905 and its re-inspection pushes it among the masterpieces of the artist.
Rubens offers here a three character scene of high psychological complexity. In 1608, François de Sales judged that the story of Lot was not an incest but a forgivable sin. Lot is a nice old drunkard, like Noah.
In his great compositions from this phase of his career, Rubens wisely mixes nude and clothing. Although the bare flesh is the main target of the work, such a mingled attire brings presence and actuality to his antique theme. Samson and Delilah, the Massacre of the Innocents and the Drunken Silenus are other famous examples.
The abundant flesh is processed in an impasto that allows subtle variations of light and texture and promotes the sensual effect despite the advanced age of the man. Lot and his daughters remained in excellent condition in which only an aging varnish may be slightly blamed.
The artist had carefully read the Genesis : the two women were not made pregnant in the same day and only one is naked, ready but also worrying for the act. Her sister is closer to the father, with the charming smile of a woman who is achieving her conspiracy. The attitude and indeed the splendidly haggard gaze of the man express his full intoxication that encourages the nude girl to pour the wine once again. The Silenus will reuse similar characters in 1616.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
In Italy, Rubens had admired Titian. In the north, he sees the increasingly risqué themes by Goltzius and Wtewael. Taboos fall : Bible and mythology offer erotic stories through moral excuses.
On July 7 in London, Christie's sells as lot 12 Lot and his daughters, oil on canvas 190 x 225 cm painted by Rubens circa 1614. This painting is a rediscovery : it had not been seen since a failed attempt of sale in 1904 and 1905 and its re-inspection pushes it among the masterpieces of the artist.
Rubens offers here a three character scene of high psychological complexity. In 1608, François de Sales judged that the story of Lot was not an incest but a forgivable sin. Lot is a nice old drunkard, like Noah.
In his great compositions from this phase of his career, Rubens wisely mixes nude and clothing. Although the bare flesh is the main target of the work, such a mingled attire brings presence and actuality to his antique theme. Samson and Delilah, the Massacre of the Innocents and the Drunken Silenus are other famous examples.
The abundant flesh is processed in an impasto that allows subtle variations of light and texture and promotes the sensual effect despite the advanced age of the man. Lot and his daughters remained in excellent condition in which only an aging varnish may be slightly blamed.
The artist had carefully read the Genesis : the two women were not made pregnant in the same day and only one is naked, ready but also worrying for the act. Her sister is closer to the father, with the charming smile of a woman who is achieving her conspiracy. The attitude and indeed the splendidly haggard gaze of the man express his full intoxication that encourages the nude girl to pour the wine once again. The Silenus will reuse similar characters in 1616.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1937 Portrait of a Young Patron
2018 SOLD for $ 27M including premium
Edward James is the son of an American railroad boss and of a supposed natural daughter of King Edward VII. He lives in England. He is a wealthy poet, and his interest in psychoanalysis is transformed into a passion for surrealist art.
In 1937 James is 30 years old. Dali introduces him to Magritte. Their connivance is immediate and perfect. Magritte proposes to make two surrealist portraits of his new patron.
Magritte sends a preparatory drawing to his model. He has chosen the theme of the portrait whose head is entirely replaced by a dazzling light. To make sure of James' enthusiasm, Magritte asks him to take care of the photographic preparation in the pose that matches the drawing. James has the picture taken by Man Ray.
On November 12 in New York, Sotheby's sells this portrait of James by Magritte, oil on canvas 73 x 55 cm painted in 1937, lot 35estimated $ 15M. Magritte has friendly chosen a Freudian title, Le Principe du Plaisir. The outline of the head is embedded in a halo that makes the image even more laudative.
The provenance testifies to the lasting success of this portrait. It belonged to James and then to his foundation until 1978 and remained in another collection since 1979.
The second portrait, also painted in 1937, is titled La Reproduction Interdite. It is another development of the theme of the visible and the hidden. James looks at himself in a large mirror in which his reflection is seen from behind.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
In 1937 James is 30 years old. Dali introduces him to Magritte. Their connivance is immediate and perfect. Magritte proposes to make two surrealist portraits of his new patron.
Magritte sends a preparatory drawing to his model. He has chosen the theme of the portrait whose head is entirely replaced by a dazzling light. To make sure of James' enthusiasm, Magritte asks him to take care of the photographic preparation in the pose that matches the drawing. James has the picture taken by Man Ray.
On November 12 in New York, Sotheby's sells this portrait of James by Magritte, oil on canvas 73 x 55 cm painted in 1937, lot 35estimated $ 15M. Magritte has friendly chosen a Freudian title, Le Principe du Plaisir. The outline of the head is embedded in a halo that makes the image even more laudative.
The provenance testifies to the lasting success of this portrait. It belonged to James and then to his foundation until 1978 and remained in another collection since 1979.
The second portrait, also painted in 1937, is titled La Reproduction Interdite. It is another development of the theme of the visible and the hidden. James looks at himself in a large mirror in which his reflection is seen from behind.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
L'Empire des Lumières
1
1949
2017 SOLD for $ 20.6M by Christie's
Surrealism is most often requiring an uneasy decoding. When practiced by René Magritte, it sometimes disturbs the viewer by the very simplicity of the message. La Trahison des Images painted in 1929 became the symbol of that language which is both offbeat and poetic.
With its title attributed by Paul Nougé, L'Empire des lumières reached a similar notoriety. The theme is commonplace : a night view of a suburb inspired by the Brussels district where Magritte resides.
The inhabitants are not visible but we imagine them behind the lighted windows. A lamppost illuminates the street with a questionable effectiveness. Beside these few glows the shadows are saturated. No contradiction of scale comes to puzzle the viewer.
Above this peaceful night the sky is blue, dotted with white clouds. The artist asks a poetic question for which he knows that there is no answer : are day and night incompatible or are they two complementary elements of real life ?
The first variant of the Empire des lumières was completed in 1949. This oil on canvas 49 x 59 cm was sold for $ 20.6M from a lower estimate of$ 14M for sale by Christie's on November 13, 2017, lot 12 A.
Nobody dared questioning if the Empire des lumières was not just a mere realistic twilight. It somehow illustrates a typically Surrealist verse by Breton : 'Si seulement il faisait du soleil cette nuit'.
With its title attributed by Paul Nougé, L'Empire des lumières reached a similar notoriety. The theme is commonplace : a night view of a suburb inspired by the Brussels district where Magritte resides.
The inhabitants are not visible but we imagine them behind the lighted windows. A lamppost illuminates the street with a questionable effectiveness. Beside these few glows the shadows are saturated. No contradiction of scale comes to puzzle the viewer.
Above this peaceful night the sky is blue, dotted with white clouds. The artist asks a poetic question for which he knows that there is no answer : are day and night incompatible or are they two complementary elements of real life ?
The first variant of the Empire des lumières was completed in 1949. This oil on canvas 49 x 59 cm was sold for $ 20.6M from a lower estimate of$ 14M for sale by Christie's on November 13, 2017, lot 12 A.
Nobody dared questioning if the Empire des lumières was not just a mere realistic twilight. It somehow illustrates a typically Surrealist verse by Breton : 'Si seulement il faisait du soleil cette nuit'.
2
1961
2022 SOLD for £ 60M by Sotheby's
The friends of the artist are enthusiastic about L'Empire des Lumières and Magritte makes a total of seventeen variants over the years. An Empire des lumières 100 x 80 cm painted in 1952 was sold for $ 12.7M by Christie's on May 7, 2002, lot 36.
The largest version of L'Empire des Lumières is the fifteenth, painted by Magritte from order for a present to a friend's daughter. It is an exceptional enlarged remake of a segment of the original painting in a rare panoramic format of similar proportions.
Matching some features of Magritte's ideal woman, the daughter revealed in 2015 that she had been the charming blonde model for La Fée ignorante, a beautiful title of an artwork indeed. The artist kindly said to the teenager : “tu vois, je te peignais déjà avant de te connaître...”»
Now consigned from that single ownership, this oil on canvas 115 x 146 cm was sold for £ 60M by Sotheby's on March 2, 2022, lot 114.
Magritte himself brings a disturbing continuation much later with La Fin du monde. Over the same place the sky has become black and in a better logic the horizon is still bright. The signature head with the bowler hat appears as a threat amidst the black silhouettes of the trees. This oil on canvas 82 x 100 cm painted in 1963 was sold for $ 7M by Christie's on November 1, 2011.
The largest version of L'Empire des Lumières is the fifteenth, painted by Magritte from order for a present to a friend's daughter. It is an exceptional enlarged remake of a segment of the original painting in a rare panoramic format of similar proportions.
Matching some features of Magritte's ideal woman, the daughter revealed in 2015 that she had been the charming blonde model for La Fée ignorante, a beautiful title of an artwork indeed. The artist kindly said to the teenager : “tu vois, je te peignais déjà avant de te connaître...”»
Now consigned from that single ownership, this oil on canvas 115 x 146 cm was sold for £ 60M by Sotheby's on March 2, 2022, lot 114.
Magritte himself brings a disturbing continuation much later with La Fin du monde. Over the same place the sky has become black and in a better logic the horizon is still bright. The signature head with the bowler hat appears as a threat amidst the black silhouettes of the trees. This oil on canvas 82 x 100 cm painted in 1963 was sold for $ 7M by Christie's on November 1, 2011.
1957 Le Seize Septembre by Magritte
2019 SOLD for $ 19.6M by Christie's
The Moon is the king of the dark night. In 1956 Le Seize septembre by Magritte shows the crescent above a meadow centered by a large tree. In a closer inspection, the Moon is in the middle of the tree instead of being in the sky.
A 162 x 130 cm version painted in 1957 was sold for $ 19.6M from a lower estimate of $ 7M by Christie's on November 11, 2019, lot 16A.
A 162 x 130 cm version painted in 1957 was sold for $ 19.6M from a lower estimate of $ 7M by Christie's on November 11, 2019, lot 16A.
1962 Collusion with the Moon
2020 SOLD for £ 19M including premium
Magritte's surrealism is an incongruous juxtaposition of easily recognizable ordinary elements. After the war, he is famous and spectators are looking for surrealist interpretations. When there is none, as in L'Empire des lumières, the artist reaches another dimension. He becomes a poet.
The Moon is a recurring element in the art of Magritte. Full or in crescent, it shines at dusk or at night. In 1955 Le Maître d'école is an example of the new preponderance of poetry in his art. In a soft twilight, the man with the bowler hat turns his back to us for looking at a wasteland bordered by a few houses. The bright crescent is just above the hat. A 33 x 25 cm gouache was sold for $ 6.7M including premium by Sotheby's on November 5, 2015.
The Moon is the king of the dark night. In 1956 Le Seize septembre shows the crescent above a meadow centered by a large tree. In a closer inspection, the Moon is in the middle of the tree instead of being in the sky. A 162 x 130 cm version painted in 1957 was sold for $ 19.6M including premium by Christie's on November 11, 2019.
There is nothing impossible in A la rencontre du plaisir, oil on canvas 46 x 55 cm painted in 1962, without relation to previous works of the same title. Probably composed for his circle of friends, this painting brings together several traditional elements of the artist. It is estimated £ 8M for sale by Christie's in London on February 5, lot 32.
The full moon shines above a glade in the still blue sky of a much advanced twilight. The man with the hat is in the same position as in Le Maître d'école, but almost indistinguishable in this atmosphere which is even darker than in L'Empire des lumières. On the left, the composition is completed by the theater curtain, symbol of a fake world.
The Moon is a recurring element in the art of Magritte. Full or in crescent, it shines at dusk or at night. In 1955 Le Maître d'école is an example of the new preponderance of poetry in his art. In a soft twilight, the man with the bowler hat turns his back to us for looking at a wasteland bordered by a few houses. The bright crescent is just above the hat. A 33 x 25 cm gouache was sold for $ 6.7M including premium by Sotheby's on November 5, 2015.
The Moon is the king of the dark night. In 1956 Le Seize septembre shows the crescent above a meadow centered by a large tree. In a closer inspection, the Moon is in the middle of the tree instead of being in the sky. A 162 x 130 cm version painted in 1957 was sold for $ 19.6M including premium by Christie's on November 11, 2019.
There is nothing impossible in A la rencontre du plaisir, oil on canvas 46 x 55 cm painted in 1962, without relation to previous works of the same title. Probably composed for his circle of friends, this painting brings together several traditional elements of the artist. It is estimated £ 8M for sale by Christie's in London on February 5, lot 32.
The full moon shines above a glade in the still blue sky of a much advanced twilight. The man with the hat is in the same position as in Le Maître d'école, but almost indistinguishable in this atmosphere which is even darker than in L'Empire des lumières. On the left, the composition is completed by the theater curtain, symbol of a fake world.
1962 L'Arc de Triomphe by Magritte
2020 SOLD for £ 17.8M by Christie's
L'Arc de Triomphe, painted by Magritte in 1962, features in a low contrast of twilight a full height chestnut tree against a background of leaves seen in close-up, confronting the trunk as a symbol of stillness with its free foliage.
Such departure from his signature Surrealism to some decorative effect was made at a restart point after an illness, when the artist suddenly desired to explore a theme of Les Goûts et les Couleurs, which was indeed the original title of that painting.
This large size oil on canvas 130 x 162 cm was sold for £ 17.8M from a lower estimate of £ 6.5M by Christie's on July 6, 2020, lot 36.
Such departure from his signature Surrealism to some decorative effect was made at a restart point after an illness, when the artist suddenly desired to explore a theme of Les Goûts et les Couleurs, which was indeed the original title of that painting.
This large size oil on canvas 130 x 162 cm was sold for £ 17.8M from a lower estimate of £ 6.5M by Christie's on July 6, 2020, lot 36.
1962-1963 Souvenir de Voyage by Magritte
2022 SOLD for £ 16M by Christie's
A small size undated painting by Magritte was sold for £ 3.4M by Sotheby's on March 1, 2017, lot 50 and for £ 16M by Christie's on June 28, 2022, lot 40.
Typically for its period ca 1962-1963, this oil on canvas 41 x 33 cm has a banal title which is a reuse from an earlier opus of a non related theme, Souvenir de voyage. The composition is simple and effective.
The new Souvenir de voyage is confronting two of the lifelong themes of the artist, the still life made incongruous by turning to stone and the night and day effect.
The monumental apple shaped rock monopolizes the foreground. Night and day is a twilight sky with heavy clouds centered in a bright moon crescent while a midday shadow surfaces on the sand under the apple. The slim crescent moon is straight above the apple tail.
Another Souvenir de voyage from the same series is displaying a petrified candle standing on the beach under an open sky.
Typically for its period ca 1962-1963, this oil on canvas 41 x 33 cm has a banal title which is a reuse from an earlier opus of a non related theme, Souvenir de voyage. The composition is simple and effective.
The new Souvenir de voyage is confronting two of the lifelong themes of the artist, the still life made incongruous by turning to stone and the night and day effect.
The monumental apple shaped rock monopolizes the foreground. Night and day is a twilight sky with heavy clouds centered in a bright moon crescent while a midday shadow surfaces on the sand under the apple. The slim crescent moon is straight above the apple tail.
Another Souvenir de voyage from the same series is displaying a petrified candle standing on the beach under an open sky.
1964 The Truncated Man
2019 SOLD for £ 18.4M including premium
René Magritte transforms any object into an illusion. The mystery of the composition must attract and maintain the observer, but there is no explanation. There is the same relationship between the real world and the painting as between an object and its advertising.
Magritte patiently built his universe with images of objects that intersect, merge, overlap, repeat in an endless game. In real life, he blends into the banality by wearing the suit, the tie and the bowler hat of Mr. Everybody.
The man and the woman have different roles. The woman is naked, full front, ready to merge into an antique marble. Unlike her, the man with the bowler hat very rarely displays his face, hidden by the invading flight of an apple or a bird. There are no self-portraits, except when this theme has been explicitly ordered by a client, because the artist has abolished any difference between himself and the others.
On February 27 in London, Christie's sells as lot 108 Le Lieu commun, oil on canvas 100 x 81 cm painted in 1964. The press release of November 5 announced an estimate between £ 15M and £ 25M. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house.
In a composition cut up like disparate strips of wallpaper, the man with the bowler hat appears twice. On the left he is in front with his banal face fully visible. On the right, limited to the nape of the neck, the ear and the back of the jacket, he leaves the stage.
The man is there but he is nowhere. The right portion scrolls smoothly between the edge of the wall and the landscape, but the left portrait is truncated by the same piece of landscape in front of a similar wall. If we re-assemble these two pieces, the head would be complete.
Like Escher and his impossible figures, Magritte abolishes the three-dimensional logic. At the same time, he is preparing his masterpiece of this kind, titled Le blanc-seing, showing a horse and its riding woman cut by the forest.
Magritte patiently built his universe with images of objects that intersect, merge, overlap, repeat in an endless game. In real life, he blends into the banality by wearing the suit, the tie and the bowler hat of Mr. Everybody.
The man and the woman have different roles. The woman is naked, full front, ready to merge into an antique marble. Unlike her, the man with the bowler hat very rarely displays his face, hidden by the invading flight of an apple or a bird. There are no self-portraits, except when this theme has been explicitly ordered by a client, because the artist has abolished any difference between himself and the others.
On February 27 in London, Christie's sells as lot 108 Le Lieu commun, oil on canvas 100 x 81 cm painted in 1964. The press release of November 5 announced an estimate between £ 15M and £ 25M. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house.
In a composition cut up like disparate strips of wallpaper, the man with the bowler hat appears twice. On the left he is in front with his banal face fully visible. On the right, limited to the nape of the neck, the ear and the back of the jacket, he leaves the stage.
The man is there but he is nowhere. The right portion scrolls smoothly between the edge of the wall and the landscape, but the left portrait is truncated by the same piece of landscape in front of a similar wall. If we re-assemble these two pieces, the head would be complete.
Like Escher and his impossible figures, Magritte abolishes the three-dimensional logic. At the same time, he is preparing his masterpiece of this kind, titled Le blanc-seing, showing a horse and its riding woman cut by the forest.
