Ivan Puni (Jean Pougny)

Marie Lesieur, Paris
Collection of Herman Berninger (1911-2012), Zurich
Acquired from the widow of the above by the present owner

Paris, Galerie Coard, Pougny: oeuvres choisies, 14 November - 5 December 1953, no.23
Paris, Galerie Charpentier, Plaisirs de la Campagne, 1954, no.139
Paris, Musée National d'Art Moderne, Pougny, 1958, no.91
Zurich, Kunsthaus Zürich, Pougny, 23 April - 29 May 1960, no.140
Turin, Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna, Rétrospective Pougny, 22 November 1962 - 13 January 1963, no.158
Paris, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris; Berlin, Berlinische Galerie, Jean Pougny/Iwan Puni, 1892-1956, 13 May - 14 November 1993, no.90

Exhibition catalogue Pougny: oeuvres choisies, Paris: Galerie Marcel C. Coard, 1953, no.23 listed
Exhibition catalogue Plaisirs de la Campagne, Paris: Galerie Charpentier, 1954, no.139 listed as Dans le pré
Exhibition catalogue Pougny, Paris: Éditions des musées nationaux, 1958, p.21, no.91 listed; pl.X illustrated
R.V. Gindertael, Pougny, Geneva: Pierre Cailler, 1957, pl.70 illustrated
Exhibition catalogue Pougny, Zurich: Kunsthaus Zürich, 1960, p.29, no.140 listed
Exhibition catalogue Jean Pougny, Turin: Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna, 1962, p.66, no.158 listed
H.Berninger and J.-A. Cartier, Pougny, Catalogue de l’oeuvre, vol.2, Tübingen: Ernst Wasmuth, 1992, p.48 illustrated; p.283, no.1087 illustrated and listed
Exhibition catalogue Jean Pougny, Paris: Paris-Musées, 1993, p.150, no.90 illustrated and listed
Exhibition catalogue Iwan Puni, 1892-1956, Berlin: Berlinische Galerie, 1993, p.160, no.90 illustrated and listed

‘One characteristic of Puni which is of particular importance is the type of canvas he used to execute his paintings. Puni never used new canvases, preferring old ones, of which he always kept a reserve under the carpets in his studio. From 1937 onwards, he chose aged canvases, often cracked and worn, even revealing their weave, which he patiently prepared secretly before beginning to paint. It was then that he also got into the habit of mounting his paintings on wood and especially on masonite, by a secret procedure that gave stability and permanent protection to his works, which he always had framed under glass. The warm and precious material paired with the superimposition of the layers and Puni’s play with the imperfections and accidents of his canvases gives his paintings their inimitable dreamy atmosphere, successfully reflecting his inner emotions.’ (H.Berninger and J.-A. Cartier, Pougny, Catalogue de l’oeuvre, vol.1, Tübingen: Ernst Wasmuth, 1972, pp. 86-87)