WOLFGANG PAALEN (Vienna 1905–1959 Taxco) Composition. Watercolour on paper. Signed lower right: Paalen. With archive stamp verso. 31 × 22.5 cm. Provenance: - Collection of Geo Dupin, Paris. - Private collection, Germany. The work is registered at the Wolfgang Paalen Archive under number 32.22 Z. * The full tax is charged on this item marked * in the auction catalogue, i.e. VAT is charged on the sum of the bid price plus the surcharge for those items. The VAT will be refunded to Purchasers providing a validly stamped export declaration. ------------------------------------------------- WOLFGANG PAALEN (Wien 1905–1959 Taxco) Komposition. Aquarell auf Papier. Unten rechts signiert: Paalen. Verso mit dem Archivstempel. 31 × 22,5 cm. Provenienz: - Sammlung Geo Dupin, Paris. - Privatsammlung Deutschland. Das Werk ist im Wolfgang Paalen Archiv unter der Nummer 32.22 Z registriert. Dieses mit * (Asterisk) bezeichnete Objekte ist vollumfänglich mehrwertsteuerpflichtig, d. h. bei diesen Objekten wird die MWST auf den Zuschlagspreis plus Aufgeld berechnet. Käufer, die eine rechtsgültig abgestempelte Ausfuhrdeklaration vorlegen, erhalten die MWST rückvergütet.
Jacques and Natasha Gelman: Collecting Modern Mexico Wolfgang Paalen 1905 - 1959 From the Painter's Log-Book signed with the initials WP, titled, dated 48 and inscribed No. 6 (on the reverse) oil on amate paper mounted on wooden artist's palette 19 ¼ by 17 ⅜ in. 49 by 44 cm. Executed in 1948.
Artist: Wolfgang Paalen (1905 - 1959) Title: Abstract Composition Year: 1942 Medium: Woodblock on Japon, signed and dated in pencil Image Size: 14 x 10 inches Size: 18 x 13.5 in. (45.72 x 34.29 cm) Description: From the collection of the late Larry Saphire.
WOLFGANG PAALEN (Wien 1905–1959 Taxco) Composition. Watercolour on paper. Signed lower right: Paalen. With archive stamp verso. 31 × 22.5 cm. Provenance: - Collection of Geo Dupin, Paris. - Private collection, Germany. The work is registered at the Wolfgang Paalen Archiv under number 32.22 Z * The full tax is charged on this item marked * in the auction catalogue, i.e. VAT is charged on the sum of the bid price plus the surcharge for those items. The VAT will be refunded to Purchasers providing a validly stamped export declaration. ------------------------------------------------- WOLFGANG PAALEN (Wien 1905–1959 Taxco) Komposition. Aquarell auf Papier. Unten rechts signiert: Paalen. Verso mit dem Archivstempel. 31 × 22,5 cm. Provenienz: - Sammlung Geo Dupin, Paris. - Privatsammlung Deutschland. Das Werk ist im Wolfgang Paalen Archiv unter der Nummer 32.22 Z registriert. Dieses mit * (Asterisk) bezeichnete Objekte ist vollumfänglich mehrwertsteuerpflichtig, d. h. bei diesen Objekten wird die MWST auf den Zuschlagspreis plus Aufgeld berechnet. Käufer, die eine rechtsgültig abgestempelte Ausfuhrdeklaration vorlegen, erhalten die MWST rückvergütet.
Artist: Wolfgang Paalen (1905 - 1959), Title: Village, Year: 1940, Medium: Etching, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 11/100, Image Size: 6.5 x 4.75 inches, Size: 12.5 x 9.75 in. (31.75 x 24.77 cm), Description: From the collection of the late Larry Saphire.
Artist: Wolfgang Paalen (1905 - 1959), Title: Arcanes, Year: 1953, Medium: Etching, Edition:, Image Size: 7 x 5 inches, Size: 10.75 x 7.25 in. (27.31 x 18.42 cm), Description: From the collection of the late Larry Saphire.
Artist: Wolfgang Paalen (1905 - 1959), Title: Abstract Composition, Year: 1942, Medium: Woodblock on Japon, signed and dated in pencil, Edition:, Image Size: 14 x 10 inches, Size: 18 x 13.5 in. (45.72 x 34.29 cm), Description: From the collection of the late Larry Saphire.
Wolfgang Paalen (Vienne, 1907 - Taxco, 1959) Fumage, 1938 Oil and fumage on canvas Unsigned 46 x 38 cm Provenance: - Former Cesar Moro collection, Mexico (gift from the artist) - Former Emilio Westphalen collection, Lima (gift from Cesar Moro) - Geneviève and Jean-Paul Kahn collection, Paris Exhibition: - Paris, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, "Passions privées", December 1995 - March 1996, described in the catalogue under no.43 p. 194 and illustrated p. 199 Bibliography: - Gustav Regler, "Wolfgang Paalen", Nierendorf, New York, 1946, illustrated in the catalogue p. 29 - Andreas Neufert, "Wolfgang Paalen, Monographie - Schriften - Oeuvrekatalog, im Inneren des Wals", Springer, Wien, 1999, described in the catalogue under no. 38.24 and illustrated p. 304 (reversed) - Gérard Durozoi, "Histoire du mouvement surréaliste", Ed. Hazan, Paris, 1997, illustrated in the catalogue p. 365 Proof of provenance from Silvia Westphalen, daughter of Emilio Westphalen, dated 21/12/1992 confirming that this painting was gifted to her father by poet Cesar Moro. The buyer will be provided with a certificate of authenticity from Dr Andreas Neufert, biographer and director of The Paalen Archives, dated 9 February 2024. Wolfgang Paalen (Vienne, 1907 - Taxco, 1959) Fumage, 1938 Huile et fumage sur toile Non signée 46 x 38 cm Provenance : - Ancienne collection César Moro, Mexico (cadeau de l'artiste) - Ancienne collection Emilio Westphalen, Lima (cadeau de César Moro) - Collection Geneviève et Jean-Paul Kahn, Paris Exposition : - Paris, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, "Passions privées", décembre 1995 - mars 1996, décrite au catalogue sous le n°43 p. 194 et reproduite p. 199 Bibliographie : - Gustav Regler, "Wolfgang Paalen", Nierendorf, New York, 1946, reproduite au catalogue p. 29 - Andreas Neufert, "Wolfgang Paalen, Monographie - Schriften - Oeuvrekatalog, im Inneren des Wals", Springer, Wien, 1999, décrite au catalogue sous le n° 38.24 et reproduite p. 304 (à l'envers) - Gérard Durozoi, "Histoire du mouvement surréaliste", Ed. Hazan, Paris, 1997, reproduite au catalogue p. 365 Une attestation de provenance de Silvia Westphalen, fille d'Emilio Westphalen, datée du 21/12/1992 confirme que ce tableau a été reçu par son père auprès du poète César Moro à qui Wolfgang Paalen l'avait donné. Un certificat du Dr Andreas Neufert, biographe et directeur de The Paalen Archives, daté du 9 février 2024 sera remis à l'acquéreur.
Wolfgang PAALEN Sans titre - 1953-1954 Huile et fumage sur toile Signée des initiales et datée en bas à droite "WP 53", contresignée, datée et dédicacée au dos "à Lucie Sisser / son ami / Wolfgang Paalen / Paris / 1953-54" H : 38.0 cm, L : 61.0 cm Provenance : Cadeau de l’artiste à Lucie Sisser, Paris A l’actuel propriétaire par cessions successives Un certificat de la Wolfgang Paalen society sera remis à l'acquéreur. h : 38.0 cm, w : 61.0 cm Wolfgang PAALEN H : 38.0 cm, L : 61.0 cm h : 38.0 cm, w : 61.0 cm Oil and fumage on paper; signed with the initials and dated lower right; signed again, dated and dedicated on the reverse; 15.00 x 24.00 in.
Wolfgang PAALEN Intérieur aux météores - 1952 Huile et fumage sur papier Amate Signé des initiales en bas à droite "WP", contresigné, daté, situé et dédicacé au dos du montage ""intérieur aux / météores" / Paris 1952 / à Lucie / son ami / W/P" H : 46.0 cm, L : 27.0 cm Provenance : Cadeau de l’artiste à Lucie Sisser, Paris A l’actuel propriétaire par cessions successives Un certificat de la Wolfgang Paalen society sera remis à l'acquéreur. h : 46.0 cm, w : 27.0 cm Wolfgang PAALEN H : 46.0 cm, L : 27.0 cm h : 46.0 cm, w : 27.0 cm Oil and fumage on Amate paper; signed with the initials lower right; signed again, dated, located and dedicated on the reverse; 18.10 x 10.60 in.
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905 - 1959) Indian Summer Oil on canvas, 145 x 130cm Signed and dated (19)59; inscribed and dated 1959 verso Provenance: John Huston Collection, St. Clerans, Co. Galway; Private Collection, Dublin The main concern is not to operate for eternity, but in eternity. (From Wolfgang Paalens scrapbook Voyage nord-ouest, Canada/Alaska 1939). Austrian born artist Wolfgang Paalen was a key figure across many movements that have come to define the artistic landscape of the mid-20th century. On relocating to Paris in the 1930s, Paalen joined the Surrealist group with his then wife and fellow artist Alice Rahon. Initially he was drawn to the creative possibilities of automatism, and this led to the development of his fumage technique. He used candle smoke to make distinct impressions on the surface of the oil painting, resulting in hazy, dreamlike images. Following an invitation from Frida Kahlo, Paalen left Paris in 1939 intending to visit her in Mexico. However, before heading south, he travelled by train across Canada arriving in British Columbia in June. From there he embarked on an expedition across the Indian reserves on the north-west coast, a journey which would spark a life-long interest in indigenous art. He finally arrived in Mexico in September, shortly after the outbreak of the war and joined the group of influential artists, including Frida Kahlo, Diego Riveria and fellow expat Leonora Carrington. In an attempt to bring together the disparate strands of surrealism spread across the different continents, he organized the International Exhibition of Surrealism in Mexico City with André Breton in 1940. This large-scale work, with its canvas covered in an array of bright spots of colour against a white background alludes to his own abstract language that he had developed since the 1940s. His farewell to Surrealism published in the inaugural edition of his interdisciplinary journal Dyn (1942 1944), was a public separation from the movement and allowed him to move towards a new experimental artistic approach to exploring the unconscious mind and to look to past and prehistoric cultures which had been traditionally overlooked in the artistic canon. Paalen used Dyn to express new theoretical concepts, such as his own ideas on totemism and totemistic art, new propositions on quantum theory as well as criticism of the philosophical concept of dialectical materialism and western dualism. Paalen was one of the most influential art theorists of the period and his impact on the genesis of Abstract Expressionism and the modern art movement cannot be understated. The Dynaton, as they named themselves were a group of artists from the San Francisco Bay Area including painters Gordon Onslow Ford and Lee Mullican. The word Dynaton comes from the Greek ???? ?? ??????? that which is possible and perfectly captures the character of this present work by Paalen. There is no sense of beginning or ending in the work. The tones swirl and swim across the canvas or gather in clusters applied in thick layers to enliven the texture of the surface. It expresses an idea of an eternal, never ending universe in which there is a circular, rather than linear, order to the cosmos. Everything is coming and going in an endless cycle. This work was painted in 1959, the year that Paalen died by suicide in Mexico after suffering for many years with bipolar disorder. As a late work it exemplifies a shift in his practice described by celebrated Mexican author Octavio Paz as a florid tempest, in which Paalen was inspired by the surrounding landscape of the Yucatan Peninsula. Other examples painted in same year use very similar vivid colour palettes and compositions such as Bougainvillea (Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University St Louis) or Migración de Yucatán (Museo de Arte Carrillo Gil, Mexico City). The title Indian Summer may allude to the flower Alstroemaeria 'Indian Summer' or Peruvian Lily as it is more commonly known, reflecting the orange and yellow tones of its petals. Or it may even refer to the meteorological phenomenon of unexpected spell of warm weather in Autumn. Regardless of what determines its subject matter, it is a beautifully expressive painting that exemplified the intermittent but intensive periods of artistic productivity that characterised the final year of his life. Niamh Corcoran
Property from a Private Collection, Europe Wolfgang Paalen 1905 - 1959 Rencontre sur une plage signed Paalen, dated 36 and Paris1936 and dedicated à André Breton de tout coeur (on the reverse) oil on canvas 76 ¾ by 55 ½ in. 195 by 141 cm. Executed in 1936.
Property from a Private Collector Wolfgang Paalen 1905 - 1959 Sans titre signed with the initials WP and dated 45 (lower center) oil on amate paper 18 ½ by 10 ½ in. 47 by 26.7 cm. Executed in 1945.
Wolfgang Paalen (Austrian/Mexican, 1905-1959) Untitled, 1943 ink and wash on paper signed Wolfgang Paalen and with initials WP, dated and inscribed à Florence Arquin (lower right) 16 x 12 inches. This lot is located in Chicago. Property from the Carol Williams Collection Dr. Andreas Neufert has confirmed the authenticity of this work.Provenance:The ArtistFlorence Arquin, gift from the ArtistSamuel A. Williams, husband of the aboveThence by descent to the present owner
Wolfgang Paalen (Austrian/Mexican, 1905-1959) Untitled, 1947 gouache on Mexican (indigenous) Amate paper initialed WP, dated, and inscribed à Florence Arquin son ami Mexico (lower left) 18 1/2 x 10 1/2 inches. This lot is located in Chicago. Property from the Carol Williams Collection Dr. Andreas Neufert has confirmed the authenticity of this work.Provenance:The ArtistFlorence Arquin, gift from the ArtistSamuel A. Williams, husband of the aboveThence by descent to the present owner
Wolfgang Paalen (Austrian/Mexican, 1905-1959) Untitled, 1943 oil on canvas initialed WP and dated (lower left); dated and inscribed à Florence Arquin son ami Wolfgang Paalen Mexico (verso) 21 3/4 x 18 inches. This lot is located in Chicago. Property from the Carol Williams Collection Dr. Andreas Neufert has confirmed the authenticity of this work.Provenance:The ArtistFlorence Arquin, gift from the ArtistSam A. Williams, husband of the aboveThence by descent to the present owner Lot Essay:Scenes for a Sorcerer (You Never See the Witches) The roster of our Figuratively Speaking sale reads like a veritable Who" Who of some of the key players of the twentieth-century Mexican avant-garde—Wolfgang Paalen, Alice Rahon, and Diego Rivera, among others—as collected by Florence Arquin, the noted collector, critic, educator, and celebrated artist in her own right. Arquin, though born in New York, spent much of her life and career in Chicago, Mexico, and traveling through Latin America, employing her experiences as an artist, a friend, and confidant of important artists in Mexico such as Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, and her travels to champion the study of Mexican and Latin American art in the United States. Hindman is pleased to offer these works from the Florence Arquin Collection, many of which feature gifts from her circle of friends that, in addition to emphasizing the intricacies of the social web of this artistic community, are relics from crucial moments in their careers. This is particularly clear in the works offered by Wolfgang Paalen and Alice Rahon— who—from Parisian beginnings among the vibrancy of the Surrealist movement to the fertile influences of the Americas—are emblematic of the chaotic and romantic development of the art world in their time. Born in 1904 in Chenecy-Bullion, France, Alice Marie Yvonne Philppot would become Alice Paalen and later Alice Rahon, adopting her mother" maiden name. She was sometimes born in 1912, or in Brittany, where she summered as a child, or in any number of places in any number of years. It" fitting, then, that the 2021 anthology of her poetry transcribed in English by Mary Ann Caws is titled Shapeshifter. Rather than a loss of identity, her character's fluidity mirrors her little-known yet lasting impact on some of the most influential figures in art history and her multidisciplinary, spellbinding career. At age three, her right hip fractured, and then her leg broke at twelve, causing much of her childhood to be confined to a cast in relative isolation. The solitude wasn’t an issue for her avid imagination and only further fueled her hunger for books and stories of mythology. Her family moved to Paris in 1920, and she met the artist Wolfgang Paalen on a trip to Corsica in 1931. Paalen was in Corsica with a dear friend, Swiss photographer Eva Sulzer. Paalen and Sulzer met after Paalen" painful rejection from the Academy in Berlin. He was ultimately undeterred from becoming an artist; having grown up surrounded by his father" collection of Old Masters paintings and under the tutelage of painter Leo von Konig, his deep appreciation for the subject had been instilled from an early age. Although Paalen was a year her junior, it seemed he had lived several lifetimes by the time he met Rahon. Formerly distinguished upper-class members of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, his parents separated after his younger brother died suddenly in an insane asylum following a homoerotic affair, presumably of suicide. His mother" increasingly bipolar disposition worsened as the Wall Street crash of 1929 drained the rest of their fortune. Finally, his older brother Rainer shot himself in the head with a pistol in front of him. Rainer miraculously survived, but Paalen" personal and artistic development had been forever altered in this decade of family tragedy. Paalen and Rahon fell deeply in love in Paris, marrying in 1934. Perched cautiously in the years between the wars, Paris was bohemian heaven, with Andre Breton at the helm of the burgeoning Surrealist movement. Paalen was already among this circle and brought the vivacious Rahon along with him; she quickly befriended Miro, modeled for Man Ray in Harper" Bazaar, and began designing hats for Schiaparelli. eluard nicknamed her L’Abeielle Noire (the black bee) for her deep brunette hair, and Picasso took her as a lover before Paalen harshly objected. Breton officially invited the couple to join the Surrealists in 1935. Around this time, Rahon began to paint, scraping the paint from Paalen" palettes to make works inspired by the ancient wall paintings in Altamira, Spain, that they had visited at Miro" bequest. Deeply inspired by her travels, the couple returned to Paris, where Breton encouraged Rahon to publish her first book of poetry: A meme la Terre (On Bare Ground), printed by Editions Surrealistes -- a limited edition each with an engraving by Yves Tanguy. She would go on to publish two additional books of poetry before deciding to devote herself entirely to painting. At the same time, Breton was encouraging another artist: Frida Kahlo. After meeting in Mexico through Leon Trotsky, the Soviet revolutionary, he arranged for her first solo exhibition at the Julien Levy Gallery in New York in 1938. After its success, he invited her to Paris for another exhibition the following year. Kahlo arrived in Paris to find that Breton had yet to clear any of her paintings for customs, nor did he actually still own a gallery; a last-minute effort from Duchamp managed to bring together a show, albeit less successful than her previous. The trip was not without its victories, however -- a purchase from the Louvre made Kahlo the first Mexican artist in their collection, and the doyennes of the Parisian art scene welcomed her warmly -- including Picasso, Miro, Schiaparelli, and Rahon. Despite Breton" insistence that Kahlo" work was Surrealist, she rejected this label, writing to a friend after her show of "this bunch of coocoo lunatics and very stupid surrealists" who "are so crazy 'intellectual' and rotten that I can't even stand them anymore."; Though the canonical categorization of Kahlo" work is frequently debated, she was not the only one who felt this way about the defining characteristics of the Surrealist movement – a growing skepticism had begun to haunt Paalen as an ideological shift began to lead him to reject the hold of Freud" rigid theories. Rahon and Kahlo were fast friends, with a mutual understanding of their physical childhood traumas and struggles with mobility and their childlessness as women – and women artists, no less. As political unrest loomed, Kahlo invited Rahon and Paalen to stay with them in Mexico City, an offer that was quickly accepted. Paalen, Rahon, and their close friend and patron Sulzer set off for New York, intending to head directly to Mexico but changing course to the Northwest after being intrigued by native artworks after a chance encounter at a gallery. Meandering down the West Coast, Paalen, Rahon, and Sulzer were profoundly affected by local artists, with Paalen and Rahon continuing to be drawn to totemic and indigenous works and Sulzer likewise influenced by the vast landscapes. Finally, at the end of 1939, the three of them settled into a home Kahlo and her husband Rivera had rented for them in the San Angel section of Mexico City, directly next to their home, Casa Azul. Upon the Paalens settling in Mexico City, Duchamp wrote intermittently to Peggy Guggenheim and Julien Levy, passionately promoting the work of his friend Paalen: Dear Julien, P. S. to my recent letter: Do you know Paalen's work? I suppose that you have seen some reproductions. Among the young Surr[ealists]'s, he ought to come out – he paints scenes "for" a sorcerer (you never see the witches). All this to hope that you might show him in N.Y. Levy was impressed and arranged an exhibit for Paalen in New York. It was well attended, including Pollock, Gottlieb, and Motherwell. One notable absence, however, was Trotsky. Though an introduction was frequently encouraged, Paalen refused, accusing his friends of ";pseudo-religious paternal fixations of Surrealists, who didn’t dispose of the means to find other ways out of the crisis Marxism left in their minds than to find a new political father."; This repudiation was to become another marker of Paalen" dissatisfaction with Surrealism. He announced his public separation from the group and divorced himself from Breton in 1942 with the publication of the first issue of DYN, an art magazine centered on philosophical art theory with scathing criticism of Surrealism and all it stood for. Though only six issues of DYN were produced between 1942 and 1944, the publication was profoundly influential as the center of the art world transitioned from Surrealism to Abstract Expressionism following the end of the second World War. With Paalen as editor, the magazine included poems from Cesar Moro, photographs and paintings from Florence Arquin, writings from Henry Miller and Anais Nïn, art from Henry Moore, and the contributions of many others. Rahon" painting career began to achieve widespread recognition during the DYN years, with her first solo show at Galeria de Arte Mexicano in Mexico City in 1944. She would frequently exhibit in North America and Europe for the remainder of her life. Her personal works – gifts to friends and pieces in honor of them – most aptly illustrate the magical and indescribable parts of this catalytic time in history and art. Just as she was Eluard" L’Abeielle Noire, she became Kahlo" jirafa (giraffe) for her long legs and large brown eyes. Rahon, in turn, memorialized Kahlo in her painting Ballad for Frida, dedicated to ";Frida aux Yeux d'hirondelle"; (Frida in the eyes of a swallow), inhabited by scenes from their friendship and animal talismans from their years together – owls, birds, cats, and of course, giraffes. It" with great pleasure that we present in this sale several gifts to Florence Arquin from both Rahon and Paalen, tokens of their affection and markers of their development as artists. Rahon gave Arquin two works: Le Chat (1943) and Untitled (1946). Le Chat (1943), a personalized drawing inscribed pour Florence son amie Mexico, comes to life with lines that seem to vibrate off the page, both detailed and fantastically obscure. Cats, familiars to the sorcerers of Surrealism, snake in and out of the photos Arquin took and carefully preserved in her scrapbook from her time with Kahlo, Rivera, Paalen, and Rohan. Untitled (1946) is colorful and topographical, with a note of the genuine tenderness between them: in the lower right corner, after the dedication, the word cariñoso is inscribed – caring. Paalens’ gifts are equally intimate and demonstrate the breadth of his skill as an artist. Two untitled works from 1943 are each emotive and meticulous: the first with swirls of color and movement, the second stormy and reflexive. A third piece, Untitled (1947), is an excellent example of the influence of his environment and interest in indigenous culture, with thin lines of gouache carefully painted on an indigenous Mexican Amate paper. The years surrounding these exchanges were tumultuous for the couple; through Rahon" career taking flight and the buzzy years of DYN, they ultimately decided to divorce in 1947. Rahon would become a Mexican citizen and create screenplays for ballet and film. On the night of the opening of her exhibition at Galeria Pecanins in Mexico City in 1969, she fell and fractured her right hip again, leading her to retreat to a life of relative isolation. This time, she denied any medical intervention, remembering the pain of her childhood. Her continued isolation (save for a few guests, including Sulzer) contributed to the increasingly younger art world overlooking her work, despite her role in developing Mexican art and her influential circle of friends. Her final solo exhibition was in 1986, and she died the following year at a nursing home in Mexico City after refusing to eat. History all too often lets the careers of female artists retreat to the shadows of their male counterparts. Still, Rahon was a force of nature, and with the recent reconsideration of the art world may finally be getting her due. Paalen" prolific career continued, and he eventually made amends with Breton, who acknowledged that any criticism of Surrealism that he had was valid. He became increasingly interested in archaeology and contributed to ideas of the matrilinear social structure of ancient societies in Mesoamerica. Paalen" genius never dampened, but his bipolar disposition made it increasingly difficult for him to function, while his obsessive collection of indigenous artifacts started attracting rumors of illicit activity. The last years of his life were spent in an old house and studio in a small town in Morelos, Mexico, where he was supported by his close friends Gordon Onslow Ford and Sulzer. He was found dead of a gunshot wound to the head in 1959. Though Rahon and Paalen" relationship was at times tempestuous, their connection – and that of their circle of friends – left an indelible mark on the art world. Arquin" careful preservation of these works allows us a look inside the inner life of the avant-garde. The gifts are, in a way, a complete picture of the couple, if only for a moment: offering the full spectrum of color and darkness, form and lack thereof, image and anxiety, during a time when their own lives were rapidly changing shape.
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) Untitled, 1954 signed with the artist's initials 'WP' (lower right) ink on paper 2 1/4 x 6 1/4 in. 5.7 x 15.9 cm. For further information on this lot please visit the Bonhams website
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) Portrait d'Einstein signed with the artist's initials, inscribed and dated indistinctly 'WP Albert Einstein 1940' (on the reverse) oil on canvas 36 x 28 9/16 in (91.5 x 72.5 cm) Painted circa 1940-1941 For further information on this lot please visit the Bonhams website
Wolfgang Paalen (1905-1959) Sans titre assemblage de trois éléments en bois recouvert de daim et en cuir élément brun: 39 x 18.5 cm. élément rouge en daim: 11 x 10.5 cm. élément rouge en cuir: 73.5 cm.
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) La rosée de Mai signé des initiales 'WP' (en bas à droite) titré et daté 'La rosée de Mai 1953' (au revers) Huile et fumage sur toile 46 x 65 cm. Peint en 1953 Provenance : Galerie Galanis-Hentschel Paris. Collection privée Paris. Expositions: Paris Galerie Galanis-Hentschel Paalen mai-juin 1954 n.p. no. 26. Paris Librairie Loliée Wolfgang Paalen Peinture - Objets - Dessins novembredécembre 1960 n. p. no. 11. BIBLIOGRAPHIE A. Neufert Wolfgang Paalen Im Inneren des Wals Tepoztlán 1999 p. 337 no. 53.35 (illustré à l'envers identifié comme Le jockey du zinc avec une description erronée). Docteur Andreas Neufert a confirmé l'authenticité de cette oeuvre. Un certificat d'authenticité pourra être délivré à la charge de l'acquéreur. Wolfgang Paalen est certainement l'une des figures les plus influentes des avant-gardes d'entre-deux guerres en Europe et en Amérique. A la fois peintre théoricien ethnologue collectionneur d'art précolombien et amérindien son apport à la création subconsciente et l'étude des arts indigènes eut un impact considérable dans le développement du Surréalisme en Europe mais aussi dans les prémisses de l'Expressionnisme abstrait aux Etats-Unis. Né en 1905 à Vienne Wolfgang Paalen grandit au sein d'une famille influente de la bourgeoisie viennoise et berlinoise. Son père Gustav ingénieur constitue la fortune familiale en perfectionnant divers produits ménagers et assemble une importante collection de tableaux de Titien à Renoir à travers laquelle Wolfgang Paalen a ses premiers contacts artistiques. Après s'être formé à Rome Berlin et Munich Paalen s'installe en 1928 à Paris où il s'éloigne de ses premières influences impressionnistes et expressionnistes pour arriver à l'abstraction dès 1932. Paalen évolue au sein des avant-gardes parisiennes à travers le groupe Abstraction-Création avec Jean Hélion à partir de 1930 puis du groupe Surréaliste avec André Breton que Paalen rencontre en 1935. C'est durant les années 1930 que Paalen parvient à son style de maturité influencé dans ses tableaux abstraits par l'art cycladique et dans ses grands paysages surréalistes par le subconscient. En outre il développe à partir de 1936 la technique du 'fumage' utilisée dans la présente oeuvre consistant à parcourir la toile avec une flamme pour créer des motifs de fumée aléatoires. Sans doute l'innovation majeure de Paalen cette technique sera plus tard reprise par Salvador Dali et Yves Klein. Partageant sa vie entre le Mexique et les Etats-Unis à partir de 1939 Paalen revient en France en 1951 et entame une série d'oeuvres abstraites gestuelles connues sous le nom de 'peintures telluriques' dans laquelle s'inscrit La rosée de mai. 'Provenant de la terre' cette série s'inspire de l'art rupestre que le peintre découvre en 1933 dans les grottes d'Altamira en Espagne puis dans les environs de Saint Cirq La Popie en Occitanie où Paalen passe ses étés avec André Breton dans les années 1950. Dans la présente oeuvre les tons ocres gris et mauves de larrière plan suggèrent une paroi à la fois minérale et végétale tandis que le fumage et les épaisses lignes blanches appliquées directement du tube puis au couteau évoquent la stylisation de l'art pariétal. La rosée de mai vise une démarche artistique s'inspirant du primitif et de l'organique similaire à l'approche de Jean Dubuffet et sa série des Texturologies à la même époque. Issue d'une important collection parisienne La rosée de mai fut présentée dans la dernière exposition importante du vivant de Paalen à la galerie parisienne Galanis-Hentschel en 1954. Cinq ans plus tard isolé et démuni l'artiste met fin à ses jours au Mexique clôturant un chapitre important de l'histoire du surréalisme et de l'abstraction.
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) Sans titre (objet) bois et cuir 15 x 33 x 12 cm. Exécuté en 1936; cette oeuvre est unique wood and leather 5 7/8 x 13 x 4 3/4 in. Executed in 1936; this work is unique Provenance Maurice Lefebvre-Foinet, Paris. Collection particulière, Paris. Puis par descendance au propriétaire actuel. Exposition Paris Musée d'art moderne de la ville de Paris et Bruxelles, Musée d'Ixelles, L'aventure de Pierre Loeb : la Galerie Pierre, Paris, 1924-1964, juindécembre 1979, no. 143. Bibliographie J. Pierre, Wolfang Paalen, Paris, 1980, p. 73 (illustré). A. Neufert, Wolfang Paalen, Im Inneren des Wals: Monografie, Schriften, OEuvrekatalog, Vienne, 1999, p. 292, no. 36.16 (illustré).
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) Cette nuit signé des initiales 'WP' (au revers) encre et graphite sur papier d'amate mexicain (indigène) 46 x 26.2 cm. Exécuté en 1945 signed with the initials 'WP' (on the reverse) ink and pencil on Mexican (indigenous) Amate paper 18 1/8 x 10 3/8 in. Executed in 1945 Recto Verso Provenance Gigi Richter (Irmingard Emma Antonia Crompton), Londres (acquis auprès de l'artiste). Puis par descendance au propriétaire actuel. Dr Andreas Neufert a confirmé l’authenticité de cette oeuvre.
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) Sans titre signé des initiales et daté 'WP 45' (en bas à droite) huile et fumage sur papier d'amate mexicain (indigène) 48.7 x 28 cm. Peint en 1945 signed with the initials and dated 'WP 45' (lower right) oil and fumage on Mexican (indigenous) Amate paper 19 1/8 x 11 in. Painted in 1945 Provenance Gigi Richter (Irmingard Emma Antonia Crompton), Londres (acquis auprès de l'artiste). Puis par descendance au propriétaire actuel. Dr Andreas Neufert a confirmé l’authenticité de cette oeuvre.
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) Sans titre collage, huile, gouache, encre de Chine et plume sur papier d'amate mexicain (indigène) 45.2 x 26.2 cm. Exécuté en 1945 collage, oil, gouache, India ink and feather on Mexican (indigenous) Amate papier 17 3/4 x 10 3/8 in. Executed circa 1945 Provenance Gigi Richter (Irmingard Emma Antonia Crompton), Londres (acquis auprès de l'artiste). Puis par descendance au propriétaire actuel. Dr Andreas Neufert a confirmé l’authenticité de cette oeuvre.
- The lot is subject to full taxation (13%) * The lot is liable to resale royalties. Please note the exact Buyer’s Premium charges which can be found in the Conditions of Sale in the Terms below. (Vienna 1905–1959 Taxco, Mexico) Untitled, c. 1953, monogrammed WP, with dedication in the old covering board: à Walramo van Schoeler son ami Wolfgang Paalen Mexico 1955, oil, fumage on Amate paper, 47 x 26.5 cm, framed Certificate: Dr. Andreas Neufert, Berlin 24.3.2017, no. P53.43 Provenance: Baron Walram van Schoeler, Mexico Private Collection, North-Rhine Westphalia
WOLFGANG PAALEN (1905-1959) La rosée de Mai Signé des initiales 'WP' (en bas à droite); titré et daté 'La rosée de Mai 1953' (au revers) Huile et fumage sur toile Trace de monogramme en bas à gauche 46 x 65 cm. Peint en 1953 Provenance Galerie Galanis-Hentschel, Paris. Collection privée, Paris. Exposition Paris, Galerie Galanis-Hentschel, Paalen, mai-juin 1954, n.p., no. 26. Paris, Librairie Loliée, Wolfgang Paalen, Peinture - Objets - Dessins, novembre-décembre 1960, n. p., no. 11. Bibliographie A. Neufert, Wolfgang Paalen Im Inneren des Wals, Tepoztlán, 1999, p. 337, no. 53.35 (illustré à l'envers; identifié comme Le jockey du zinc avec une description erronée). Docteur Andreas Neufert a confirmé l'authenticité de cette oeuvre. Un certificat d'authenticité pourra être délivré à la charge de l'acquéreur. Wolfgang Paalen est certainement l'une des figures les plus influentes des avant-gardes d'entre-deux guerres en Europe et en Amérique. A la fois peintre, théoricien, ethnologue, collectionneur d'art précolombien et amérindien, son apport à la création subconsciente et l'étude des arts indigènes eut un impact considérable dans le développement du Surréalisme en Europe, mais aussi dans les prémisses de l'Expressionnisme abstrait aux Etats-Unis. Né en 1905 à Vienne, Wolfgang Paalen grandit au sein d'une famille influente de la bourgeoisie viennoise et berlinoise. Son père Gustav, ingénieur, constitue la fortune familiale en perfectionnant divers produits ménagers, et assemble une importante collection de tableaux de Titien à Renoir, à travers laquelle Wolfgang Paalen a ses premiers contacts artistiques. Après s'être formé à Rome, Berlin et Munich, Paalen s'installe en 1928 à Paris, où il s'éloigne de ses premières influences impressionnistes et expressionnistes, pour arriver à l'abstraction dès 1932. Paalen évolue au sein des avant-gardes parisiennes à travers le groupe Abstraction-Création avec Jean Hélion à partir de 1930, puis du groupe Surréaliste avec André Breton, que Paalen rencontre en 1935. C'est durant les années 1930 que Paalen parvient à son style de maturité, influencé dans ses tableaux abstraits par l'art cycladique, et dans ses grands paysages surréalistes par le subconscient. En outre, il développe à partir de 1936 la technique du 'fumage', utilisée dans la présente oeuvre, consistant à parcourir la toile avec une flamme pour créer des motifs de fumée aléatoires. Sans doute l'innovation majeure de Paalen, cette technique sera plus tard reprise par Salvador Dali et Yves Klein. Partageant sa vie entre le Mexique et les Etats-Unis à partir de 1939, Paalen revient en France en 1951 et entame une série d'oeuvres abstraites gestuelles connues sous le nom de 'peintures telluriques', dans laquelle s'inscrit La rosée de mai. 'Provenant de la terre', cette série s'inspire de l'art rupestre que le peintre découvre en 1933 dans les grottes d'Altamira en Espagne, puis dans les environs de Saint Cirq La Popie en Occitanie, où Paalen passe ses étés avec André Breton dans les années 1950. Dans la présente oeuvre, les tons ocres, gris et mauves de l’arrière plan suggèrent une paroi à la fois minérale et végétale, tandis que le fumage et les épaisses lignes blanches appliquées directement du tube puis au couteau évoquent la stylisation de l'art pariétal. La rosée de mai vise une démarche artistique s'inspirant du primitif et de l'organique, similaire à l'approche de Jean Dubuffet et sa série des Texturologies à la même époque. Issue d'une important collection parisienne, La rosée de mai fut présentée dans la dernière exposition importante du vivant de Paalen à la galerie parisienne Galanis-Hentschel en 1954. Cinq ans plus tard, isolé et démuni, l'artiste met fin à ses jours au Mexique, clôturant un chapitre important de l'histoire du surréalisme et de l'abstraction. Thomas Morin-Williams
Wolfgang PAALEN 1905 - 1959 La table d'émeraude - 1953 Huile sur toile Signée du monogramme et datée en bas à droite "WP 53", titrée au dos "la table d'émeraude" h: 92 w: 65 cm Provenance : Vente Paris, Me Loudmer, 6 avril 1987, lot 118 Acquis lors de cette vente par l'actuel propriétaire Bibliographie : A. Neufert, Wolfgang Paalen, Im Inneren des Wals, Springer, Vienne, New York,1999, no. 53.13, reproduit p.333 (titré Composition à fond bleu) Commentaire : Un certificat de Monsieur Andreas Neufert sera remis à l'acquéreur. Oil on canvas ; signed with the monogram and dated lower right, titled on the reverse Estimation 60 000 - 80 000 €
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