Paul Signac

Galerie Marseille, Paris (until at least 1934)

Private Collection, France

Private Collection (by descent from the above and sold: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, May 25, 1991, lot 44)

Patrick Carpentier, Paris (before 2000) 

Private Collection (sold: Sotheby's, New York, May 6, 2003, lot 20)

Acquired at the above sale

Lyon, Union régionale des Arts plastiques, Salon Sud-Est, 1927, no. 110

Paris, Grand Palais des Champs-Elysées, Société des Artistes Indépendants, 1928, no. 3967 (titled Entrée du port de la Rochelle)

Paris, Galerie Bernheim-Jeune, Paul Signac, 1934, no. 40 (titled La Rochelle)

Thiébault-Sisson, “Le Salon des Indépendants,” Le Temps, Paris, January 1928. discussed p. 3

André Warnod, “Le Salon des Indépendants, s’oeuvre aujourd’hui au Grand Palais,” L’Avenir, Paris, January 1928, discussed p. 4

G. de Pawlowski, “Le Salon de Le Salon des Indépendants,” Le Journal, Paris, January 1928, discussed p. 4

Roger Lesbats, “Un vernissage au Grand Palais. Une visite au Salon des Indépendants,” Le Populaire, Paris, January 1928, discussed p. 1- 2

André Warnod, “Au Salon des Indépendants,” Comoedia, Paris, January 1928, discussed p.2

Le Peuple, Paris, January 1928, discussed p. 2

Robert Rey, “Le 39e Salon des Indépendants,” L’Europe nouvelle, Paris, January 1928, discussed p. 2

Gustave Kahn, “La 39e Exposition des Indépendants,” Mercure de France, Paris, February 1928, discussed p. 199

Charles Fegdal, “Le Salon des Indépendants,” Nice-Méditerraneé, no. 14, 1928, discussed p. 75

Toussaint-Martel, Le Salon des artists indépendants, Paris, April 1928, discussed p. 119

Abel Bonnard, “Le Salon des Indépendants,” Les Annales, Paris, Febuary 1929, illustrated p. 177

Marc Sandoz, “Signac et Marquet à La Rochelle, Les Sables d’Olonne, La Chaume, Croix de Vie. Influence du site sur leur oeuvre. Oeuvres inédites 1911-1933,” Dibutade, IV, Poitiers, 1957, p. 12

Françoise Cachin, Signac, Catalogue raisoné de l’oeuvre peint, Paris, 2000, no. 577, illustrated p. 328

Excellent condition. Original canvas. Under UV, no evidence of retouching.
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.

Throughout his career, Signac's enduring passion was the depiction of water. The pointillist style was perfectly suited to the ever-changing colors and light conditions found around this subject. In Le Thonier entrant à La Rochelle (couchant) the rapid application of impasto paint beautifully depicts the dappling surface of the sea.  In his mature works Signac had developed his mastery of the pointillist technique so that his dabs of paint had become larger than the more tightly spaced dots of his earlier compositions. The style had been pioneered by Georges Seurat, in paintings such as Le Pont de Courbevoie, but through Signac became a highly expressive technique. The overall chromatic impact of these pictures was like that of a tiled mosaic, and the individualized color patches held an expressiveness and freedom that characterized many of the artist's most accomplished works. Signac described the process of pointillist colour composition as: "The painter, starting from the contrast of two colours, opposes, modifies and balances these elements on either side of the boundary between them, until he meets another contrast and starts the process over again; so, working from contrast to contrast, he covers his canvas" (P. Signac, D'Eugene Delacroix au Néo-Impressionnisme, Paris, 1899, p. 122). 

Signac’s focus on the port of La Rochelle began in 1911, when he first visited this picturesque site on the Atlantic coast of France. The artist revisited this small fishing town many times, in order to capture on canvas the brightly colored fishing boats as they sailed into the harbor between the Tour de St. Nicholas and the Tour de la Châine. According to Marina Ferretti-Bocquillon, “Asked in 1922 why he painted La Rochelle so often, Signac is said to have replied: 'I go there for the boats: for the color of the hulls and the sails. A magnificent sight! They come from all over to sell fish, it’s like a library of boats'" (Manna Ferretti-Bocquillon, Anne Distel, John Leighton, and Susan Alyson Stein, Signac 1863-1935 (exhibition catalogue), New York, 2001, p. 271).

In Le Thonier entrant à La Rochelle (couchant), Signac has depicted a tuna boat entering the port at the end of the day. The rare side view of the vessel provides evidence of the time Signac spent examining the activity in La Rochelle; the artist has rendered the full sails catching the evening breeze, lending the craft a dignified presence as it sails into the port. By leaving the crenellated top of the Tour de St. Nicholas unobstructed, the artist has emphasized the unique architecture of La Rochelle and provided a memorable and distinctive portrait of this active harbor.