Oil on canvas

97 × 162 cm. 38 1/4 × 63 3/4 in.

Signed in French and dated on bottom right

LITERATURE
2003, Mathieu: 50 Ans de Création, Éditions Hervas, Paris, p. 321
EXHIBITED
9 May – 1 Jun 1979, Georges Mathieu: Recent Paintings and Gouaches, Wildenstein Gallery, New York

PROVENANCE
Wildenstein Gallery, New York
Private Collection, Asia

Concentrate the Oriental Spiritual Thoughts, Play the Cosmic Strong Tone
The Pinnacle Classics Pay Tribute to the Centennial of the Birth of Lyrical Abstractism Master Georges Mathieu

The well-known French sculptor Auguste Rodin once said, “There is a standard line running through the universe and applying to all creations. If things freely run within this line, they will not produce anything ugly. Few artists have the energy and courage to emphasize the important line, which requires decisiveness that only a few talents have.” This “line” is the core of the “aesthetic beauty”, that crosses time and space and connects east and west.

In the fourth year after Rodin's death, a man and was capable of what Rodin said was born in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France. He would become a unique existence in the Western post-war art system——and in the 1940s, he did become the first Western artist in history to integrate oriental calligraphy into abstract painting with the unprecedented expression of lyrical abstraction in the world. He was the founder of European lyrical abstraction——Georges Mathieu!

Prologue to Lyrical Cursive

In 1945, Mathieu's magnificent artistic career officially kicked off. He pioneered performance art and created the work The Disappearance Évanescence with an experimental “trickle technique”, which was two years earlier than the adoption of “drip painting method” by the American abstractist master Jackson Pollock in 1947. He transformed the speed aesthetics in oriental calligraphy into a manifestation of primitive energy and intuition, becoming a key figure in the “Art Informal” movement in postwar Paris.

In his exploration of “action painting”, Mathieu gradually realized the power of writing. In the 1950s, he met a Chinese abstractist, the giant who was traveling in France, Zao Wou-Ki. Mathieu shared the same belief with Pierre Soulages, Hans Hartung, and others, regarding the linear characteristics of Oriental art as an important concept for their creations that connect the two ends of the Eurasian continent. In this context, Mathieu was appraised by the critic Clement Greenberg as “the most respected creator on both sides of the Atlantic.”

Pick the Crown of Glory, Stand Tall in Life
The First Appearance of the Masterpiece Silament of the 1970s

In 1978, the Grand Palais in Paris held a large-scale retrospective exhibition for Mathieu. One of his works was collected by the the Pompidou National Art and Culture Center. After experimenting with geometric changes and applied art in the 1960s, Mathieu's representative lyrical abstract style has matured.

Silament (Lot58) was completed in 1979 when Mathieu's artistic career was at its peak. It appeared at the Georges Mathieu: Recent Paintings and Gouaches exhibition at the Wildenstein Gallery in New York, immediately after its completion. In the magnificent painting, the earth-like dignified and quiet dark brown slowly spreads out, forming a majestic ancient capital in the history book, or a wise man who knows the world so well exuding a calm and solid majestic charm. It reflects the “explosive force” of the central object to the greatest extent with the unique “matte” visual sense that is rarely seen in the works of the same time. The restrained and luxurious temperament is favored by the Pompidou and other heavyweight museums.

Be the Quiet to See the Moving, Be the Wise to Understand the Universe

In the center of the painting, the brown-yellow brushstrokes swept out by a large brush show the strength of life on the stable background, driving the blue and white airflow and casting a deep shadow in the rear, giving it the visual characteristics of the hard-edged art of the 1950s, just like the sculptures or paintings of Frank Stella. The contrast of light and shade of color and the three-dimensional effect demonstrates the extraordinary characteristics of the painting, such as the balance of tense and the integration of images and backgrounds, like a glory temple standing in the center of the universe. It is tightly wrapped with soft, beating, galloping colors, cast into the source of all things with vigor and vitality.

On the left side of the painting, a straight white line is like a dazzling glory, creating an artistic conception of a poem by Su Dongpo. In the sketching of abstract graphics, Mathieu extends the visual image of the painting, illustrating the power and momentum of Chinese calligraphy, and solidifies and seals the spirit and will of the majestic king!

Spouting Emotions, Awakening Motto
The passion classic of “Wild Time”, Chemins Dépossédés

Since 1985, Mathieu's creation has become more explosive and appealing. He no longer sticks to the central composition, filling the painting with contrasting colors and gushing passion. Renovated style is like the collision of stars, giving birth to new materials and energy, which not only formed the important beginning of “cosmicization”, but also marked the advent of Mathieu's “wild period”. His creative career reached a glorious stage. With an ecstatic mentality and rapid speed, he upheaves his works to an unparalleled spiritual height.

The Uncommon Composition, the God-Like Spirit

If Silament is a resonance between body and soul, Chemins Dépossédés (Lot59) completed in 1990 would be a confrontation between reason and emotion. From the image point of view, it continues the classic symbols in the former painting, but places them in a highly dramatic situation full of conflicts and oppositions. It is the visual field for a game played by multi-party powers, inspiring unpredictable visual surprises. The contrast of the colors in the upper and lower half of the work shows a world where yin and yang coexist. The flame-like red brushstrokes explode on the upper part, while the lower part is a moist and poetic environment with the flowing water and heavy snow created by the automatic trickling technique. The broad black brushstrokes swept across the world like a gust of wind.

In the painting, the expansion and interlacing of these shapes and colors are pretty similar to the abstract structure constructed by Zao Wou-Ki, showing the common ground shared by the master of the East and West. However, in Mathieu's work, the powerful white lines are like cursive calligraphy, annotating for the above-mentioned unspeakable magnificent scenes. Closely intertwined and interacted with the images on the canvas, they whirl out the gushing emotions and sing an aggressive life!

Price estimate:
HKD: 1,900,000 - 2,500,000
USD: 244,100 - 321,200

Auction Result:
HKD: 2,280,000