Lot 65
  • 65

Odd Nerdrum

Estimate
80,000 - 120,000 GBP
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Description

  • Odd Nerdrum
  • Lunatics
  • signed and dated Nerdrum 2001-2 on the left overlap; titled Lunatics on the right overlap
  • oil on canvas
  • 204 by 351cm., 80¼ by 138¼in.

Provenance

Forum Gallery, New York and Los Angeles

Exhibited

New York, Forum Gallery, Odd Nerdrum: New Paintings, 2004

Literature

Odd Nerdrum, How We Cheat Each Other, 2009, illustrated on the front cover

Condition

Original canvas. This work is in overall very good condition, with rich colours and fine detail, and is ready to hang.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

The subject of the present work is a quintessential example of Nerdrum's large-scale allegories, presenting a sense of the apocalyptic. Portraying a time after our own civilisation, the figures wear timeless costumes: pelts, cloaks, armour and crowns. These seated figures, interacting only with themselves and in certain cases with the viewer, are set against a barren backdrop very likely taken from studies made by Nerdrum in Iceland.

Odd Nerdrum is the leading figurative painter working in Norway.  A pupil in Düsseldorf under Joseph Beuys, Nerdrum turned to seventeenth-century masters such as Rembrandt and Caravaggio for aesthetic inspiration, and bases his painting technique on traditional methods, mixing and grinding his own pigments, stretching his own canvases and using life models.