Max Ernst

Arthur Tooth & Sons, Ltd., London
Galerie Edward Loeb, Paris
E.J. Power, London
Marlborough Fine Art, London
Private Collection, Switzerland (and sold: Christie's, London, March 28, 1988, lot 35)
Private Collection (acquired at the above sale and sold: Christie's, New York, May 6, 2009, lot 41)
Acquired at the above sale

Basel, Galerie Beyeler, Max Ernst, 1955, no. 22
London, Arts Council of Great Britain (and travelling in the United Kingdom), New Trends in Painting, 1956-57, no. 16

Werner Spies, Max Ernst,Oeuvre-Katalog: Werke 1954-1963, Cologne, 1998, no. 3043, illustrated p. 1

The canvas is unlined. There is some very minor craquelure in the lower left quadrant. Apart from some minor spots of retouching towards the lower right corner and upper right quadrant, visible under ultra-violet light, this work is in good condition.
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.

Painted shortly after his triumphant return to Europe, Tableau printanier exemplifies the fully developed iconography that is so particular to Ernst's post-war oeuvre. After almost 10 years in Arizona, Ernst and Dorothea Tanning returned to France in 1953. The following year, he was awarded a Grand Prix at the Venice Biennale signifying the firm establishment of his reputation in Europe. This award was followed by high-profile retrospectives during the late 1950s and 60s throughout Europe and the United States, and the artist continued to transform the boundaries of his medium. This is evident in Tableau printanier, where Ernst's particular iconography appears in an entirely distinct environment. A cast of avian figures, who appear in the artist's earliest works, dominate a series of oils from the late 1950s and are often presented in an atmospheric space that coalesces into a definable space. The artist employs grattage techniques to revitalize the medium of oil on canvas and creates a wholly unique composition.

Tableau printanier resonates with the lingering influence of the distinctive flora and expansive landscape of the American West which had so preoccupied Ernst during his years in the United States. The artist spent ample time in Arizona with his partner, Tanning, moving to Sedona in 1946. Ernst was thrilled to find that the fantastical landscapes he had imagined in his works of the 1920s and 30s were echoed in Arizona. Discussing the significance of these surroundings as an inspiration for Ernst, John Russell wrote: "Arizona offered isolation, a celestial climate, a way of life that was both economical and free from suburban constraints. It offered the inspiration of supreme, natural beauty... Few things are more stirring than the fantastic forms and the irrational colouring of the mountains around Sedona. In the mid-1940s life and landscape in that region had an uncorrupted quality which made Arizona a Promised Land in which a new life could be begun and an old one discarded... and although Max Ernst had never been a landscape painter, in the ordinary sense, it was deeply moving for him to come upon a landscape which had precisely the visionary quality that he had sought for on canvas" (J. Russell, Max Ernst: Life and Work, New York, 1967, p. 140). The emphasis on organic forms which blossomed during his years in Arizona meets with a bold dominance of color in Tableau printanier.