Jean Xceron

Morton G. Neumann, Chicago

The Museum of Modern Art, New York (acquired as a gift from the above in 1976)

Christie's, New York, 16 July 2012, lot 94 (consigned by the above)

Paul F. Walter, New York (acquired at the above sale)

Christie’s, New York, 28 September 2017, lot 504 (consigned by the above)

Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Jean Xceron was a Greek-American painter and a key figure in the development of modern abstract art in the United States. Born in Greece in 1890, Xceron immigrated to the United States at a young age and pursued his artistic career in New York City. Here, the artist was introduced to contemporaries such as Joaquin Torres-Garcia and Max Weber and studied the work of Cézanne. Xceron was similarly influenced by the De Stijl movement and the styles of Piet Mondrian and Kazimir Malevich. Notably, Xceron worked as a security guard at the Guggenheim Museum for nearly 30 years, where he was further exposed to the leading artists working at the time. Xceron was deeply involved with the Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression, contributing to the support of modern art in America. His work remains integral to the history of American modernism.

Further testifying to its significance, the present work boasts an exceptional provenance, having been previously held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art for 36 years. Defined by precise intersecting lines and geometric forms, the present painting is an outstanding example of Xceron’s signature style.