Galerie Dreyfus
94
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MAURICE DE VLAMINCK (PARIS, 1876 – RUEIL-LA-GADELIÈRE, 1952)…
See original version (French)
94
-
MAURICE DE VLAMINCK (PARIS, 1876 – RUEIL-LA-GADELIÈRE, 1952)…
See original version (French)
Estimate €40,000 - €50,000
Voluntary lot
Description
MAURICE DE VLAMINCK
(PARIS, 1876 – RUEIL-LA-GADELIÈRE, 1952)
Flowers
Circa 1910–1920
Oil on canvas
72 x 53 cm.
Signed lower right ‘Vlaminck’
Certificate from the Wildenstein Institute
Between sky and earth, between blue and ochre, between an ethereal space and a tangible surface.
Whilst for some artists the art of painting bouquets of flowers is an exercise in style, for
Vlaminck it is the intense expression of his own artistic vision. Each new composition is conceived as
a landscape, crafted as a ‘piece’ of painting. Here, in particular, the background, treated
like a washed-out sky, allows light to filter through the clouds. The palette of washed-out blues,
which occupies almost the entire canvas as in a Dutch landscape, offers an
almost palpable contrast with the wood of this polished table, with its sharply defined outline. Vlaminck plays
with effects of depth and texture, revealed by the contrasts in his brushwork,
tonalities and lighting. He does not seek to depict a real or even plausible space. The play
of shadows here is purely formal, serving to emphasise the colours or define the planes, as
in the straight shadow cast by the vase, which ignores its baluster shape. Similarly, the light, although
emanating from the left, allows for the dark blue shadow of the vase on the background, which serves no purpose other than
to intensify the luminous reflection on the vase, and thereby its volume. But this entire setting,
painted in broad strokes, serves as a backdrop for the bouquet, whose flowers and branches
burst forth from the rounded body of the vase. Here, the brushwork becomes more refined, precise and detailed. The meticulous detail of the petals and
bell-shaped blossoms, the intensity of the bold colours – red, white, green – and the central positioning…
all combine to magnify this floral explosion. Once again, Vlaminck succeeds in
reimagining the still life as a vibrant and joyful expression.
Maurice de Vlaminck (1876–1952) was a self-taught painter of Belgian origin. He first came to
prominence in 1905 through his participation in the Salon d’Automne, which caused a scandal. Together with his friends Derain,
Matisse and Dufy, he pioneered a new style described by critics as ‘Fauvist’ and characterised by
vivid, pure colours applied in broad blocks, with no direct references to the object being
painted. Although the movement did not last much beyond the 1910s, Vlaminck’s entire body of work
would nevertheless remain imbued with its influence. From 1907 onwards, he discovered the work of Cézanne, which would be his
second great revelation and would have a major influence on his landscape compositions.
On the other hand, his aversion to Picasso and Cubism set him at odds, during the Second World
War, with the Spanish master and with an avant-garde movement of which he had nevertheless been an active member.
Vlaminck’s painting is generous and spontaneous. On the fringes of figurative art, his style, with its
broad brushstrokes and saturated colours, owes as much to the work of Van Gogh, for
his taste for impasto, as it does to that of Cézanne, for his daring spatial constructions.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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