Lot 175
  • 175

Georges Rouault

Estimate
300,000 - 400,000 USD
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Description

  • Georges Rouault
  • Vieux Faubourg
  • Signed G Rouault (lower right); signed G. Rouault (on the reverse)
  • Oil on paper mounted on canvas
  • 29 1/4 by 41 1/8 in.
  • 74.3 by 104.5 cm

Provenance

Ambroise Vollard, Paris
Mme de Galéa, Paris
Sam Salz, New York
Acquired from the above on March 18, 1952

Literature

Pierre Courthion, Georges Rouault, New York, 1961, illustrated p. 267 (dated 1937 and with incorrect dimensions)
Bernard Dorival & Isabelle Rouault, Rouault: l'oeuvre peint, vol. II, New York, 1988, no. 1573, illustrated p. 92

Condition

This painting is clean and in very good condition. It is painted on a large piece of heavily gessoed canvas. The paint layer is stable and undamaged. Under ultraviolet light there are three visible retouches in the landscape between the tree in the center and the tree next to it on the right. There is also a small retouch in the standing figure to the right of the group of three. In addition, there are small retouches to the immediate left and immediate right of the tree on the right side. There are a couple more spots of restoration in the tree itself. These retouches are all extremely small. The picture is in lovely state and should be hung as is. The above condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's.
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

Between the years 1930 and 1939, Rouault painted a substantial number of landscapes categorized as Paysages bibliques (Biblical landscapes) and Paysages animés (landscapes with figures). Created from his imagination rather than direct observation, his landscapes are renowned for the subtle placing of huddled groups of figures in urban settings.  With an emphasis on pure color, these pictures demonstrate a serene atmospheric calm. The artist's strong religious faith was the direct and overwhelming influence on these pictures.  Rouault proclaimed: "I was like a peasant in the field, attached to my pictorial soil, like the man hanged by his own hempen rope, like an ox under the yoke. Though terribly restless, I never took my nose out of my work save to ascertain the light, the shadow, the half-tint, the curious features of certain pilgrims' faces. I noted forms, colors, fleeting harmonies until I was sure they were so indelibly impressed in my memory that they would stay with me beyond the grave" (quoted in Soliloques, Neuchâtel, 1944, n.p.). 

With Rouault's words in mind, Pierre Courthion's insightful comments about the artist's technique are especially apt: "When we examine a Rouault, what strikes us first? Above all, the way the paint has been applied: very thickly and with passion, with great sureness, and with spontaneity... the thickly applied pigment achieves a hitherto unknown degree of energy; every form seems to flow directly from the artist's hand into our own sensibility" (Pierre Courthion, op. cit., p. 234).

Comp caption: Georges Rouault in his atelier in Saint-Malo, circa 1932