Max Ernst

Julian Trevelyan, London

Simon Watson Taylor, London

E. L. T. Mesens, London

Galerie Isy Brachot, Paris

Private Collection, Switzerland

London, Institute of Contemporary Arts, Max Ernst, 1952

Knokke-Le Zoute, Albert Plage, Casino Municipal, Max Ernst, 1953, no. 53, illustrated in color in the catalogue

Bern,  Kunsthalle Bern, Max Ernst, 1956, no. 36, illustrated in color in the catalogue

Brussels, Galerie Isy Brachot, L'Eternel Surréalisme, Hommage discret à E. L. T. Mesens, 1970, no. 17, illustrated in color in the catalogue

London, Helly Nahmad Gallery, Max Ernst, 2006, no. 23, illustrated in color in the catalogue

New York, Helly Nahmad Gallery, Max Ernst, 2006, no. 23, illustrated in color in the catalogue

Basel, Tinguely Museum, Max Ernst. Im Garten der Nymphe Ancolle, 2007

Patrick Waldberg, Max Ernst, Paris, 1958, p.135, illustrated in color

Werner Spies and Sigrid & Gunter Metken, Max Ernst, Oeuvre-Katalog, Werke 1929-1938, Houston and Köln, 2006, no. 1875, p.159, illustrated in color

Stable condition overall. Backboard is abraded along framing edge. Collage elements appear slightly bent and paper is splitting in areas at edges. Collage elements affixed with nails, a few of the nails are missing. In areas where the nails have oxidized, the paper is slightly discolored. The flower in the middle right has discoloration at bottom and there are some cracks to the paint layer. Other elements are 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.

Fleurs Danseuses is a splendid example of Ernst’s innovative artistic experimentations with the grattagetechnique, where layers of paint are partially rubbed away while the canvas is held against a surface. The repeating patterns from actual surfaces are visible in the shapes that appear to float against the slate gray background. As the title suggests, these abstract forms take on the appearance of dancing flowers or shells, multicolored specimens from another world.

Ernst strove to challenge and transform our preconceived ideas of nature and the ways we see the world as he stated in  his essay, What is Surrealism?: “The joy in every successful metamorphosis conforms . . . with the intellect’s age-old energetic need to liberate itself from the deceptive and boring paradise of fixed memories and to investigate a new, incomparably expansive areas of experience, in which the boundaries between the so-called inner world and the outer world become increasingly blurred and will probably one day disappear entirely” (M. Ernst, What is Surrealism?, Paris, 1934).