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57 - Gustav Adolf MOSSA (1883–1971)
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Estimate €12,000 - €18,000
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Description
Gustav Adolf MOSSA (1883–1971) Gretchen (Visions of War) – 1917 Watercolour with gouache over pencil lines on paper Signed and dated lower left “G. A. MOSSA / 1917” Inscribed lower left in the margin “Gretchen” 62.5 x 41.5 cm Provenance: Artist’s estate, 1972 France Mossa-Lombart Collection, donated during her lifetime to her children Private collection, Paris Auction, Paris, Artcurial, 14 November 2016, lot 125 Acquired at this auction by the current owner Louis Grandchamp des Raux Collection Exhibitions: Nice, L’Artistique, ‘Visions of War: Paintings, Drawings, Watercolours, Engravings’, January–February 1918, no. 118. Marseille, Galerie Lambert, ‘Allegories and Landscapes’, November 1918, no. 13 Paris, Pavillon des Arts, Nice, Galerie des Ponchettes and Galerie Mossa, Gustav Adolf Mossa: Symbolist Works, 1903–1918, June–April 1993, no. 126, reproduced on p. 215 Nice, Galerie de la Marine and Musée des Beaux-Arts, ‘Alexis and Gustav Adolf Mossa: Witnesses to the Great War’, November 2001 – January 2002, p. 6 Évian-les-Bains, Palais Lumière, ‘Eros and Thanatos in the Symbolist Work of Gustav-Adolf Mossa (1904–1918)’, February–May 2008, p. 242 Bibliography: R. Febvre, ‘La Vie artistique. At the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Nice”, in *La Vie niçoise*, 17 March 1918 J. T., “From the Grognards to the Poilus”, in *L’Eclaireur de Nice*, 5 March 1918, p. 3. J.-R. Soubiran, *Les Aquarelles symbolistes et la création plastique symboliste de Gustav Adolf Mossa*, doctoral thesis, University of Aix-en-Provence – Marseille, 1978, no. 345, p. 667 J.-R. Soubiran, *Gustav Adolf Mossa, 1883–1971*, Ediriviera, Nice, 1985, no. 337, p. 250 S. Lombart, S. Lombart, J.-R. Soubiran, Gustav Adolf Mossa, Catalogue Raisonné of ‘Symbolist’ Works, Somogy Éditions d’Art, Paris, 2010, no. A364, pp. 423–424, Watercolour and gouache over pencil on paper; signed and dated lower left; 24 5/8 x 16 3/8 in. In 1918, Gustav Adolf Mossa took part, alongside other soldier-artists, in an exhibition organised at the Cercle de l’Artistique in Nice, where he presented a series of thirteen watercolours produced the previous year. Among these *Visions of War* is *Gretchen*, a subject inspired by *Scenes from the Life of Faust*, a musical work by Robert Schumann – based on Goethe’s famous play – which Mossa had illustrated in 1912. The exhibition catalogue entry explains the theme: ‘Once she used to come to her temple to worship the Lord! She will no longer be able to, Gretschen [sic]; for her sons have destroyed the sanctuary with the torch held out to them by the Evil One’, in reference to a line from Racine’s *Athalie* (I, 1). In this allegory of the German invasion, Marguerite – whose German diminutive is Greta or Gretchen – has fallen asleep whilst spinning. The depiction of this young girl plunged into a deep sleep is probably a reference to Charles Perrault’s *Sleeping Beauty*, a fairy tale that aroused the interest of the Symbolists in the late 19th century. In the background on the right, Faust, who has just betrayed Marguerite, is making a pact with Mephistopheles. The two men embody the evil forces of the German Empire. At Gretchen’s feet, a broken vase of forget-me-nots evokes the betrayed vow of love, whilst the stillborn child of her love affair with Faust takes the form of little German soldiers emerging from the hem of her dress. The depiction of a Gothic building in the background condemns the destruction of cathedrals and evokes the loss of cultural heritage caused by the war. The artist plays on contrasts of scale, juxtaposing an imposing mythical world with the tiny soldiers of the German army, like a battle between Lilliputians and giants. This drawing by Gustav Adolf Mossa, an unclassifiable, virtuoso and subversive painter, offers a powerful testament to his art, which draws on a melting pot of diverse literary references. Here, the Nice-based painter draws on the myth of Faust to offer a political and patriotic interpretation within the harrowing context of the First World War. His transgressive art sounds the death knell for Symbolism and heralds Surrealism. Gustav Adolf MOSSA (1883–1971) 62.5 x 41.5 cm In 1918, Gustave Adolf Mossa took part, alongside other artist-soldiers, in an exhibition organised by the Cercle de l’Artistique in Nice, where he exhibited thirteen watercolours created the previous year. Among the works in Mossa’s series *Visions de Guerre* is *Gretchen*, a subject inspired by *Scenes from Goethe’s Faust*, a musical-theatrical work by the German composer Robert Schumann – based on Goethe’s famous play – which Mossa illustrated in 1912. The catalogue for the 1918 exhibition specifies the theme: “Long ago she would come to her temple to worship the Eternal! She will no longer be able to, Gretschen [sic]; for her sons have destroyed the sanctuary with the torch handed to them by the Evil One”, a reference to a verse from Racine’s Athalie (I, 1).  In this allegory of the German invasion, Marguerite – whose German diminutive is Greta or Gretchen – has fallen asleep at her spinning wheel. The image of this young girl in a deep sleep is likely a reference to Charles Perrault’s Sleeping Beauty, a tale that captured the imagination of the Symbolists in the late 19th century. In the bottom right-hand corner, Faust, who has just betrayed Marguerite, is making a pact with Mephistopheles. The two men embody the evil forces of the German Empire. At Gretchen’s feet, a broken vase of forget-me-nots evokes the betrayed vows of love, whilst the stillborn child, the result of her tryst with Faust, takes the form of little German soldiers emerging from the hem of her dress. The depiction of a Gothic building in the background condemns the destruction of cathedrals and evokes the loss of cultural heritage caused by the war. The artist plays on contrasts of scale, juxtaposing an imposing mythical world with the tiny soldiers of the German army, like a battle between Lilliputians and giants.  This drawing by Gustav Adolf Mossa, a subversive and virtuoso painter who defied categorisation, stands as a powerful testament to his art, which draws upon a wealth of literary references. Here, the painter from Nice draws on the myth of Faust to offer a political and patriotic interpretation against the harrowing backdrop of the First World War. His transgressive art signals the end of Symbolism and heralds the advent of Surrealism.
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About the sale The Louis Grandchamp des Raux Collection
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Auction time 10/24/2026 at 4:00 PM
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