Gerhard Richter, Abstraktes Bild (654–4), 1988. Estimate £1,500,000–2,000,000. From Contemporary Art Evening Auction.
Abstraktes Bild is a visually arresting example of Gerhard Richter’s revered body of abstract paintings. Appearing at auction for the first time, this painting is spectacular in colour and dramatic in composition, aptly demonstrating the theatre of Richter’s idiosyncratic painterly method. Created at the start of Richter’s seminal 1988-1992 period of production, during which time his Abstrakte Bilder realized new heights of sophistication and elegance, the present work epitomizes the series’ strength.
Auguste Rodin, Penseur, petit modèle. Reduced size conceived in 1902 and the present example was cast between 1920 and 1930. Estimate £800,000–1,000,000. The Collection of Lord and Lady Attenborough. From Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale.
Recognised as one of the most famous images in the history of Western art, Rodin’s Penseur was first conceived as the central figure of Dante in his monumental Gates of Hell. Penseur has since become a universal symbol of creative genius and the personification of the act of thinking and reflection.
Marc Chagall, Grand coq blanc, 1979-80. Estimate £1,000,000–1,500,000. From Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale.
Grand coq blanc is populated with many of Chagall’s iconic motifs – featuring a large cockerel, bouquet of flowers, melancholic lovers and the rooftops of his provincial birthplace of Vitebsk.
Jean Dubuffet, L’Homme au Papillon, 1954. Estimate £3,000,000–5,000,000. Property Formerly from the Collection of E. J. Power. From Contemporary Art Evening Auction.
Homme au Papillon should be considered amongst the most important works of Jean Dubuffet’s 1950s praxis. As a self-portrait, it is consummately rare, meanwhile, in its focus on the butterfly motif, it refers to the celebrated series of butterfly paintings that Dubuffet created in the early 1950s. In style, Homme au Papillon exemplifies the Art Brut tradition that had captivated Dubuffet since 1945, and yet also assimilates influence from many of the masters of American Abstract Expressionism. It is a magisterial painting, as compelling in aesthetic as it is significant in historic context.
Fernand Léger, L’Etoile blanche, 1946. Estimate 1,000,000–1,500,000. Property from a Private Collection, Sweden. From Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale.
L’Etoile blanche is a complex arrangement of stylised and geometric forms executed in wonderfully rich colours, creating a work of remarkable visual presence.
Francis Picabia, Ino, 1929-30. Estimate £500,000–700,000. Property from the Collection of Rose Adler. From Surrealist Art Evening Sale.
Ino belongs to Picabia’s elegant Transparences series, which derives its name from multiple layers of overlapping imagery. The bold frame for Ino was designed by French fashion, furniture and jewellery designer Rose Adler, who received the work directly from the artist – bringing together Surrealism and Art Deco.
Yves Klein, Untitled Monogold (MG 47), circa 1961. Estimate £700,000–900,000. Property from a Private German Collection.
From Contemporary Art Evening Auction.
Gold was a material of immense importance for Yves Klein. Along with Blue and Pink, it was one of only three colours upon which the vast majority of his oeuvre was founded. Fewer than 50 Monogold paintings were created between the years 1960 and 1961: they should be considered not only as a continuation of Klein’s monochrome theme, but also as a reference to his time spent as a Judo student in Japan, exposed to numerous Buddhist and Taoist temples. The present example is charming in its delicacy, and appears at auction for the first time, having been gifted to the family of the present owner by the artist in 1961.
René Magritte, Le Repas de noces, 1940. Estimate £900,000–1,200,000. Property from a Private French Collection.
From Surrealist Art Evening Sale.
One of the finest gouaches by Magritte to appear on the market in recent years, Le Repas de noces has remained in the same private collection for almost 50 years. This work combines two images that Magritte explored around this time: a reclining lion, the trademark of a Brussels food retailer that was a ubiquitous part of everyday life, and an egg on a table top.
Highlights from our upcoming London sales of Impressionist and Modern Art, Surrealist Art and Contemporary Art will be on view in Hong Kong from 14 to 19 January. The auctions feature an outstanding variety of paintings, works on paper and sculpture. Click ahead to view a selection of the works from the exhibition, including a stunning Penseur by Auguste Rodin and a visually arresting Abstraktes Bild by Gerhard Richter.
Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Sale
1 March 2017 | London
Surrealist Art Evening Sale
1 March 2017 | London
Contemporary Art Evening Auction
8 March 2017 | London