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22 - André Masson (1896–1987) *A Rape* 1965 Oil on canvas, signed…
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Estimate €10,000 - €15,000
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Description
André Masson (1896–1987) *A Rape* 1965 Oil on canvas, signed top left, titled and dated on the reverse 33 x 41 cm Provenance: > Galerie Louise Leiris, Paris (label on the reverse) > Private collection, acquired directly from the gallery > Pierre Bergé et Associés auction of 3 May 2022, lot 12 > Private collection “‘Good manners’ ought to prevent me from speaking of my erotic work, viewed from these two perspectives: radical and veiled. Never mind! (I have been the subject of too much persecution not to brush it aside.) I shall give as an example of this fusion a painting whose title does not beat about the bush: *Le Viol*. Out of modesty (a somewhat dubious modesty), I shall let André Breton speak for himself: “Eroticism in the work of André Masson must be regarded as the keystone. It is this that governs the convulsive arrangement of men’s and women’s bodies, drawing even the furniture—which was previously suspected only of bearing their imprint—into their marvellous brawl.” (La Mémoire du monde, op. cit., p. 29.) The work we are presenting today can be compared to the oil on canvas *La Chute* (*Le Viol* or *L’amour de la vitesse*), mentioned above; both, in fact, depict the same subject and have the same dimensions. Painted in 1939, *La Chute* (*The Rape* or *The Love of Speed*), sold at Christie’s Paris in 2014, bears witness to a turbulent period both in the artist’s personal life and in the world around him. In the 1965 painting *Un viol*, the painter of the world’s violence evokes, through bold brushwork, raw energy and a vital force. He depicts a hostile and monstrous mythology that is almost unsettling. Through an unvarnished eroticism, in which the sexual act is presented in all its violence, André Masson follows in the long tradition of abductions and erotic pursuits.
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About the sale Contemporary Art • Street Art • Ceramics • Design
Auction location
Auction time 07/11/2026 at 10:30 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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