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AGUTTES
60
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ATTRIBUTED TO HENRI ROUSSEAU (1844-1910)
Vase with four tuli…
See original version (French)
60
-
ATTRIBUTED TO HENRI ROUSSEAU (1844-1910)
Vase with four tuli…
See original version (French)
Estimate €15,000 - €20,000
Voluntary lot
Description
ATTRIBUTED TO HENRI ROUSSEAU (1844-1910)
Vase with four tulips
Oil on canvas
Signed lower right
(Small perforation and wear)
Unframed
36 x 25,5 cm - 14 1/8 x 10 in.
Oil on free canvas, signed lower right
Provenance :
Collection of M. Fraysse, manager of a hotel in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Paris (acquired around 1910-1915 in a shop in Montmartre)
Private collection, France (by descent from him)
Bibliography :
Henry Certigny, Le Douanier Rousseau en son temps, Biographie et Catalogue Raisonné, Tome II, Tokyo: Bunkazai Kenkyujyo, 1984, described and reproduced under no. 212, pp. 430-431
Notice:
In Le Douanier Rousseau en son temps, Henri Certigny methodically sets out the factors that led him to include Vase with Four Tulips in the second volume of his catalogue raisonné.
He begins by pointing out that the work came from the collection of a certain Fraysse, a Parisian amateur active at the beginning of the 20th century, who acquired the painting around 1910-1915 in a shop in Montmartre. Described as the manager of a hotel in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Fraysse "was an amateur with eclectic tastes, as the collection he left at his death, around 1922, included, among other works, a Vollon, a Diaz, two coloured pencils by Steinlen, a drawing by Friesz, one by Foujita, a gouache by Dinet, some Zinggs and even an unsigned stippled pastel".
The author goes on to discuss the signature on the painting, as well as its "perfect state of cleanliness and conservation". He points out that the authenticity of the signature was confirmed by Raymond Trillat, a renowned graphologist at the time, by comparison with the signature deposited by Henri Rousseau at the Préfecture de Police. He also added that the canvas, which had been kept under glass after being removed from its stretcher, had thus escaped any restoration, which would explain its remarkable freshness.
Finally, Henri Certigny gives his analysis of the composition's stylistic peculiarities: the extreme simplification of the forms, the lack of relief on the vase, the bold chromatic treatment of certain decorative motifs and the rudimentary nature of the support. In his view, these characteristics would place the work in the last years of Douanier Rousseau's career, around 1910, at a time when the artist, sensitive to the climate of Fauvism, was also working as a private teacher. He therefore puts forward the tempting hypothesis that the work was done in a pedagogical context, as a demonstration for pupils, which would explain the unusual spontaneity and simplicity of the composition.
Further information:
Among Douanier Rousseau's bouquets, our Vase with Four Tulips derives its singularity from the painter's emphasis on the container rather than the contents. Flanked by handles decorated with circular motifs, it is adorned with a rich polychrome decoration reminiscent of the vase the artist gave to Max Weber in 1908, the young American painter who had encouraged him to paint on ceramic. It was in André Metthey's studio in Asnières-sur-Seine, under the guidance of Ambroise Vollard, that Henri Rousseau learned to paint on earthenware.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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