- 379
ROMUALDO FREDERICO LOCATELLI | The Flautist
Estimate
1,000,000 - 2,000,000 HKD
bidding is closed
Description
- Romualdo Frederico Locatelli
- The Flautist
- Signed
- Oil on canvas
- 93 by 74 cm; 36 1/2 by 29 in.
Provenance
Sotheby's Singapore, 4 April 2004, Lot 38
Private Collection, Singapore
Sotheby's Hong Kong, 7 October 2012, Lot 355
Acquired from the above sale by the present owner
Private Asian Collection
Private Collection, Singapore
Sotheby's Hong Kong, 7 October 2012, Lot 355
Acquired from the above sale by the present owner
Private Asian Collection
Condition
This work is in good overall condition as viewed. There is some craquelure to the work, but this is consistent with the age of the work and nature of the medium. Examination under ultraviolet light reveals some very minor and scattered areas of retouching, and an area of retouching at the right side of the bottom edge. Framed.
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.
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.
Catalogue Note
"For Locatelli there are no problems beyond the beauty of the abundance of life. One will find no depth and metaphysical ideas in his work. In a spontaneous manner he reveals the beauty of the body and nature. Here there is no sadness and sorrow that are shown, but their opposite, the beauty and happiness of the world. Here are no complicated voices from a mysterious psyche but here is presented pure pleasure of the senses."
- Erminia Locatelli Rogers, Romualdo Locatelli - The ultimate voyage of an Italian artist in the Far East, Darga Fine Arts Editions, Jakarta, 1994, p.166. Charming and whimsical, The Flautist is a sublime rarity by Italian artist Romualdo Locatelli, whose most sought-after works pay homage to his utopian days in Bali. Born in 1905 in Bergamo, Northern Italy, Locatelli spent the majority of his childhood assisting his father with his frescos and decorative art, and even embellished frescos of his own for the Parish Church in San Filastro at the age of 14. At a time when romanticised and poeticized visions of the orient enraptured the fascination of European art circles, Locatelli sought to transcend the boundaries of formal portraiture, and found inspiration within neo-classicist and late orientalist aesthetics. Locatelli worked as an imaginative portrait artist in Italy until a Bandung based Dutch collector, John De Jong, invited the maestro to move to the Dutch East Indies as an artist in residence. Thus, 1938 marked the beginning of Locatelli’s pivotal tenure in Indonesia, where he was invigorated with a new impetus to illustrate from the whim of his own passions. Locatelli’s loving depictions of the Balinese locale are evocative of his sheer preoccupation with their exotic beauties and traditions, and The Flautist is a quintessential exemplar.
As one of the handful of precious pieces that survived the bombings of Manila by the Japanese in 1941, The Flautist is a remarkable commemoration of Locatelli’s vast oeuvre. Executed in 1939, this painting depicts a young Balinese boy, with a suling, a bamboo ring flute, perched on his lips. Poised and ready to play a tune, the boy casts a cheeky glance to the viewer, as if waiting for instruction. Here, Locatelli saturates the sepia toned canvas with chiaroscuro, as he plays with feathery brushstrokes of light and shadow to blanket the background with natural shades of lustrous golds, earthy browns and velvety yellows. While Locatelli’s contained yet robust palette lends from pigments typically found in traditional Javanese paintings, his expressive and confident brush strokes are indicative of his classical Italian training and Impressionist roots. Locatelli’s masterful treatment of brushwork and light come together as the luminous glow of the Balinese sunset casts its warm rays onto the boy, and his silhouette blends into the soft terrain. Amongst the lush and sensual aesthetics of the landscape, Locatelli manages to transform his enchantment with the essence of his subjects into something tangible, as loose brushstrokes of colours delineate the soft, dream-like features of the boy. Situated at the viewer’s eye level, it seems as if the boy is staring right at us with a serene and assured gaze, which enhances the intensity of the encounter.
For Locatelli, Bali was an entire realm of earthly delights, waiting for discovery, and every piece from this period of his covetable oeuvre is reminiscent of the pure curiosity and delight he had during his time there. A highly rare masterpiece, The Flautist provides collectors with an exquisite vignette into the halcyon days of pre-war Southeast Asia, as Locatelli prompts us to listen carefully to the young boy, as he shares with us the cheerful cultures and traditions of Bali through his captivating melodies.
- Erminia Locatelli Rogers, Romualdo Locatelli - The ultimate voyage of an Italian artist in the Far East, Darga Fine Arts Editions, Jakarta, 1994, p.166. Charming and whimsical, The Flautist is a sublime rarity by Italian artist Romualdo Locatelli, whose most sought-after works pay homage to his utopian days in Bali. Born in 1905 in Bergamo, Northern Italy, Locatelli spent the majority of his childhood assisting his father with his frescos and decorative art, and even embellished frescos of his own for the Parish Church in San Filastro at the age of 14. At a time when romanticised and poeticized visions of the orient enraptured the fascination of European art circles, Locatelli sought to transcend the boundaries of formal portraiture, and found inspiration within neo-classicist and late orientalist aesthetics. Locatelli worked as an imaginative portrait artist in Italy until a Bandung based Dutch collector, John De Jong, invited the maestro to move to the Dutch East Indies as an artist in residence. Thus, 1938 marked the beginning of Locatelli’s pivotal tenure in Indonesia, where he was invigorated with a new impetus to illustrate from the whim of his own passions. Locatelli’s loving depictions of the Balinese locale are evocative of his sheer preoccupation with their exotic beauties and traditions, and The Flautist is a quintessential exemplar.
As one of the handful of precious pieces that survived the bombings of Manila by the Japanese in 1941, The Flautist is a remarkable commemoration of Locatelli’s vast oeuvre. Executed in 1939, this painting depicts a young Balinese boy, with a suling, a bamboo ring flute, perched on his lips. Poised and ready to play a tune, the boy casts a cheeky glance to the viewer, as if waiting for instruction. Here, Locatelli saturates the sepia toned canvas with chiaroscuro, as he plays with feathery brushstrokes of light and shadow to blanket the background with natural shades of lustrous golds, earthy browns and velvety yellows. While Locatelli’s contained yet robust palette lends from pigments typically found in traditional Javanese paintings, his expressive and confident brush strokes are indicative of his classical Italian training and Impressionist roots. Locatelli’s masterful treatment of brushwork and light come together as the luminous glow of the Balinese sunset casts its warm rays onto the boy, and his silhouette blends into the soft terrain. Amongst the lush and sensual aesthetics of the landscape, Locatelli manages to transform his enchantment with the essence of his subjects into something tangible, as loose brushstrokes of colours delineate the soft, dream-like features of the boy. Situated at the viewer’s eye level, it seems as if the boy is staring right at us with a serene and assured gaze, which enhances the intensity of the encounter.
For Locatelli, Bali was an entire realm of earthly delights, waiting for discovery, and every piece from this period of his covetable oeuvre is reminiscent of the pure curiosity and delight he had during his time there. A highly rare masterpiece, The Flautist provides collectors with an exquisite vignette into the halcyon days of pre-war Southeast Asia, as Locatelli prompts us to listen carefully to the young boy, as he shares with us the cheerful cultures and traditions of Bali through his captivating melodies.