Lot 329
  • 329

Anto Carte

Estimate
100,000 - 150,000 EUR
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Description

  • Anto Carte
  • Déposition de croix
  • signed Anto Carte and dated 1918 (lower left)
  • oil on paper laid down on canvas
  • 78 x 110 cm; 30 5/8 x 43 1/4 in.

Provenance

Sale: Brussels, Salle des ventes des Beaux-Arts, November 22, 1979, lot 711
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Exhibited

Mons, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Mons-Vienne, 1980-81, no. 184
Liège, Musée de l'Art Wallon; Charleroi, Musée Communal des Beaux-Arts & Mons, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Six peintres de Wallonie, 1986, no. 3, illustrated in the catalogue n.p.

Condition

Executed on cream wove paper laid down on canvas. There is a very milky varnish preventing UV light from fully penetrating, however UV examination reveals areas of retouching to the lower left corner, upper right quadrant and upper left corner. There are further small spots and lines of retouching in places. One old restoration towards the upper right corner appears to relate to a repaired tear (appox. 9 cm long). There are some small area paint shrinkage to the left part of the upper edge. This work is in overall 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. 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

Painted in 1918, this painting of the descent from the cross is part of a cycle of works painted by Anto Carte immediately after his encounter with Emile Verhaeren in Paris at the end of the 1910s. As a humanist painter, primarily interested in the human condition, Anto Carte was part of the “Belgian Imagists” group alongside artists such as Valerius de sSedeleer or Gustave van de Woestyne with whom he exhibited in 1923 in Paris.

The present painting reveals Anto Carte’s propensity for audacious compositions and the use of particularly innovative perspective and points of view. The precise drawings and deep, rich colours are characteristic of the work of this artist who became the founder of the Nervia group (1928-1948). Anto Carte’s technique involves a precise use of line which highlights the silhouettes against the background, thus giving rise here to a poignant expressivity.

By painting one of the most well know Bible stories, the Belgian painter also captured a portrait of the human condition in this work of monumental austerity. Indeed, all of the painters’ art is based on a continual philosophical reflection on human destiny and the present Descent from the Cross throws the spectator into a deep introspective meditation.