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Adel Abdessemed
Estimate
50,000 - 70,000 EUR
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Description
- Adel Abdessemed
- Lampedusa
- signed Adel Abdessemed (along the right edge)
- black chalk on paper
- 51 1/8 x 74 3/4 in.
Provenance
Private collection, Paris
Literature
P.L. Pizzi (ed.), Adel Abdessemed, Works 1988–2015 (Drawings), New York, 2017, vol. 3, illustrated p. 381
Condition
The work has been inspected framed (in an artist's frame). Few scotch tapes are visible along the edges. There were there prior to the execution of the work and inherent to the artist technique fixing the paper to the wall. This work is in excellent 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."
"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
Lampedusa, the title of this large black chalk drawing refers to the tragically notorious island situated to the South of Sicily which has become the arrival point for migrants crossing the sea from North Africa. As early as 2011, three years before the phenomenon reached today’s scale, Adel Abdessemed, inspired by the first dramatic images broadcast on the internet and in the media, created his work Hope, exhibited at the Centre Pompidou in 2012, and simultaneously began the Lampedusa drawings.
By transfiguring the image of a tragic news event, the artist draws an absolute vision of the destiny of all migrants in the world and across history. Through his application of black chalk and the simplification of line, the image of this sea crossing of anonymous people crammed in a boat concentrates all the violence of this human tragedy. The Lampedusa series deliberately refers to Gericault’s famous Radeau de la méduse, which itself relates to an event that had a tremendous political and social impact at the time. Abdessemed assumes and renews this legacy. With the same force, he confronts us with a current event, whilst evoking an eternal human drama.