Wifredo Lam (1902-1982)

Galerie Maeght Lelong, Paris
Private Collection, Paris 
Sale: Loudmer Scp., Paris, Importants tableaux abstraits et contemporains, June 10, 1990, lot 207, illustrated in color
Private Collection
Sale: Christian de Quay, Paris, Tableaux modernes & anciens, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, June 22, 1995, lot 86, illustrated in color
Private Collection, Europe

Paris, Galerie Maeght Lelong, Wifredo Lam, peintures, 1987, no. 11, p. 14, illustrated
Zurich, Galerie Maeght Lelong, Wifredo Lam, peintures 1965-1976, May-June,1987, no. 10, illustrated in color 

Max-Pol Fouchet, Wifredo Lam, Barcelona/Paris, 1976, no. 570, p. 244, reproduction of an earlier version 
Lou Laurin-Lam and Eskil Lam, Catalogue Raisonné of the Painted Work, Volume II, 1961-1982, Lausanne, 2002, no. 70.83, p. 342, illustrated
Daniel Abadie, Lam et les poètes, Paris, 2005, p. 46, illustrated in color 

This work has been lined. The paint layer has been cleaned and varnished. Under ultraviolet light, one can see a spot of restoration in the middle, and a few dots in the center of the left side. There are two areas that show strongly beneath the signature in the lower right, which seem to correspond to retouches. There are a few similar areas in the lower right corner, on the extreme right edge, and in the upper right corner. There are a few retouches in the U-shaped thin dark red element in the center. There also seem to bea few retouches in the small sideways white face in the center right. (This condition report has been provided courtesy of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc.)
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.

“Lam…has gone to the heart of human nature where existence manifests itself as the springboard of a dream which is incarnated in the chronicle of the ages. And it is for this reason that Lam alerts us to the existence of a disquieting state of being, first seen as a silent void from which the cipher of an ancient message can be grasped.”

-Marco Valsecchi, 1962