JACQUES MAJORELLE | Aouache in Anemiter

Private collection, U.S.A. (sale: Sotheby’s, Paris, 28 October 2009, lot 36)
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

Félix Marcilhac and Amélie Marcilhac, Jacques Majorelle (1886-1962), Répertoire de l’œuvre peint, Paris, 2017, p. 274, no. 152, catalogued & illustrated

Gouache heightened with gold on canvas laid down on board. The board is flat, even, and ensuring a stable support. There are some minor, scattered specs of paint loss, including one small spot in the lower right corner, mainly visible only upon close inspection. Inspection under ultra-violet light reveals no visible sign of restoration. Overall, this work is in good condition and is ready to hang.
"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."

From June to September 1928 Majorelle settled in Anemiter, a village in the Ounila valley in the Atlas Mountains, south-east of Marrakesh. Notwithstanding the practical complications of travelling in the area, Majorelle travelled widely around the Atlas, capturing its breath-taking landscapes and its local inhabitants. The present work depicts an aouache, or ‘tambourine’, celebration, the name used to describe both the dance and the music played during such festivities. Majorelle was captivated by these colourful occasions, which inspired the juxtapositions of colours and shapes that are his paintings. Indeed, when 97 of Majorelle's paintings of the Atlas were exhibited at the Galerie Georges Petit in Paris in 1922, they caused a sensation, their bright colours and unconventional compositions and abstract shapes setting Orientalist painting on a whole new trajectory so different from the Romantic or rigorously academic works expected of the genre. Majorelle's modernist bent was instilled in him from an early age growing up in Nancy, the son of the celebrated furniture designer, Louis Majorelle, and at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Nancy, at a time when the Art Nouveau movement was in its ascendancy.