- 147
Jean Dubuffet
Estimate
200,000 - 300,000 USD
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Description
- Jean Dubuffet
- Site à la Source
- signed with the artist's initials and dated 78
- acrylic and paper collage on canvas
- 47 1/2 by 41 in. 120.6 by 104.1 cm.
Provenance
Thomas Messer, New York (acquired directly from the artist in 1982)
Gift of the above to the present owner
Gift of the above to the present owner
Literature
Max Loreau, ed., Catalogue des travaux de Jean Dubuffet, Fascicule XXXII: Théâtres de mémoire, Lausanne, 1982, cat. no. 90, p. 86, illustrated
Condition
This work is in very good condition overall. The upper right corner of the work is buckling slightly, creating a protrusion in the collaged paper. There are scattered spots of loss or lifting to the acrylic, the most noticeable of which is a 1/4 inch loss the center of the work. There are two horizontal abrasions across the center of the middle. There are scattered artist pinholes in the collaged papers and some of the paper is lifting slightly at the edges. Framed.
*Please note the auction begins at 9:30 am on November 14th.*
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
In a 1994 interview, Thomas Messer reflected on his 27 year tenure as director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum: “In terms of more or less tangible accomplishments, one would have to look at the collection as I found it and as I left it, with perhaps the Thannhauser collection, the Hilla Rebay collection, and the Peggy Guggenheim collection as centerpieces in terms of massive enrichments….I came to the Guggenheim as a European at a time at which the great emphasis upon American post-war art needed a balance by way of the inclusion of neglected European achievements. And it was natural for me to provide such a balance.”
Mr. Messer’s stewardship of the Guggenheim began in 1961, following directorships at the Roswell Museum of History and Art, the American Federation of the Arts, and the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. Having just been installed in Frank Lloyd Wright’s landmark cylindrical design two years prior, the museum was very much an institution in transition. Still in the midst of a curatorial departure from the early mandate on non-objective painting, the Guggenheim was financed solely by its original endowment, and boasted both a small staff and modest publication schedule. Furthermore, while the dramatic new space had increased the museum’s visibility, it presented significant installation challenges.
Mr. Messer ambitiously confronted the task of presenting works of art in this unique space with his 1962 exhibition of sculpture from the Hirshhorn which was universally regarded as a triumph. He continued to expand and grow the museum’s exhibition program with important shows of work by artists such as Joseph Beuys, Antonio Tapies, and Pierre Alechinsky, as well as continuous retrospectives of work by artists such as John Chamberlain, Jean Dubuffet, Alberto Giacometti, and Max Ernst. Of this latter group he remarked: “these artists were important to me—they were part of the exploration of modern art history.” But it was the transformative acquisition of two important collections secured by Messer – the Thannhauser Collection, assembled by Justin K. Thannhauser, included Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and early modern masterpieces, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, as well as the Venice palazzo that housed it – which indelibly changed the footprint of the Guggenheim and secured its international reputation.
In addition to the artists whose work he championed and even befriended, such as Dubuffet, Chillida, and Barnett Newman, among so many others, Thomas Messer also successfully enlarged the museum’s professional staff, creating a generation of Guggenheim curators who are forever indebted to his leadership. As he reflected back on those he supported during his tenure and their subsequent accomplishments, he remarked “This means the young people whom I brought in to the profession made, in their subsequent assignments, important contributions that were most gratifying to me.”
Mr. Messer’s stewardship of the Guggenheim began in 1961, following directorships at the Roswell Museum of History and Art, the American Federation of the Arts, and the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. Having just been installed in Frank Lloyd Wright’s landmark cylindrical design two years prior, the museum was very much an institution in transition. Still in the midst of a curatorial departure from the early mandate on non-objective painting, the Guggenheim was financed solely by its original endowment, and boasted both a small staff and modest publication schedule. Furthermore, while the dramatic new space had increased the museum’s visibility, it presented significant installation challenges.
Mr. Messer ambitiously confronted the task of presenting works of art in this unique space with his 1962 exhibition of sculpture from the Hirshhorn which was universally regarded as a triumph. He continued to expand and grow the museum’s exhibition program with important shows of work by artists such as Joseph Beuys, Antonio Tapies, and Pierre Alechinsky, as well as continuous retrospectives of work by artists such as John Chamberlain, Jean Dubuffet, Alberto Giacometti, and Max Ernst. Of this latter group he remarked: “these artists were important to me—they were part of the exploration of modern art history.” But it was the transformative acquisition of two important collections secured by Messer – the Thannhauser Collection, assembled by Justin K. Thannhauser, included Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and early modern masterpieces, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, as well as the Venice palazzo that housed it – which indelibly changed the footprint of the Guggenheim and secured its international reputation.
In addition to the artists whose work he championed and even befriended, such as Dubuffet, Chillida, and Barnett Newman, among so many others, Thomas Messer also successfully enlarged the museum’s professional staff, creating a generation of Guggenheim curators who are forever indebted to his leadership. As he reflected back on those he supported during his tenure and their subsequent accomplishments, he remarked “This means the young people whom I brought in to the profession made, in their subsequent assignments, important contributions that were most gratifying to me.”
- Lisa Dennison