René Magritte

Galerie Le Centaure, Brussels
E.L.T. Mesens, Brussels (acquired from the above in 1932)
Raymond Magritte, Brussels (the artist's brother, acquired from the above circa 1935)
Arlette Magritte, Brussels (by descent from the above and sold: Christie's, London, June 25, 2001, lot 41)
Private Collection, Japan
Acquired from the above by the present owner

Ostend, Museum voor Moderne Kunst, Van Ensor tot Delvaux, 1996-97

David Sylvester, ed., René Magritte, Catalogue raisonné, Oil Paintings, 1916-1930, vol. I, London, 1992, no. 106, illustrated p. 186

In very good condition. There is a very thin web of stable craquelure visible in several small areas of the green pigments & the upper register in the black. Under U.V, there are some small spots and dots of restoration along half of the right edge, some of the lower edge and at the center of the left edge. There are a few specks of restoration to fill this cracking in the lower right and upper left corners of the green vines, but these restorations are all relatively minor. Otherwise fine.
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.

Prior to his arrival at Surrealism, Magritte primarily painted academic landscapes and still lifes in 1910s, then experimented with a quasi-Cubist style in the early 1920s. The present image marks a major step in Magritte’s transition from pre-Surrealism to the signature iconographic motifs that would appear in numerous compositions, including paintings, gouaches and collages, throughout his illustrious career.

This striking composition—illustrating an imaginative invertebrate, evocative of the creatures in Max Ernst's collages, lying motionless on a dark stage beneath a dagger-like curtain—offers an exceptional example of Magritte’s focus on the subconscious. As such, the subject is not immediately recognizable; rather it relates to an unearthly creature from the depths of the subconscious, and it offers one the earliest examples of Surrealism in Magritte’s oeuvre. Great Journeys (Les grands voyages) (see fig. 1) is a predecessor to La nourriture de l’ennemi and marks the debut of the haunting invertebrate in Magritte's oeuvre, in that example justaposed with the transubstantiation of a woman's body into rooftops of a small town. As is typical of such Surrealist dialogue, both images successfully toy with and thwart any conscious attempt at rationalization, their narratives merely hinted at by their titles.