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Impressionist and Modern Art
|
- Sale 6379
Live
| New York
Oct 28 | 11:00 AM EDT
Live
| New York
Sale 6379
| New York
| New York
Estimate$150,000 – $250,000
We wish to thank Galerie Maurice Garnier for kindly confirming the authenticity of the present lot, which is recorded in the gallery's Archives and which will be accompanied by a photo-certificate of authenticity.
Literature:
Bernard Buffet, Catalogue Raisonné de l'Œuvre Peint, Vol. 2, Fonds de Dotation Bernard Buffet, Paris, 2024, p. 385 (illustrated).
Lot Essay:
Painted in 1958, La Tour Eiffel stands as one of Bernard Buffet’s most striking homages to the French capital — a city where he was born and which he never ceased to depict throughout his long and prolific career.
Specifically, this work belongs to a cycle of Parisian views known as Paysages de Paris, initiated in 1956 and exhibited at Galerie David et Garnier. Comprised of about twenty paintings, the series featured landmarks such as Notre-Dame, the Sacré-Cœur, Tour Saint-Jacques, and the Eiffel Tower as depicted here. Its success was such that Buffet soon expanded the project to other metropolises, including London and New York, confirming his ability to invest urban landmarks with profound psychological depth, and to transform them into emblems of both personal and collective identity.
In this canvas, the Eiffel Tower ascends with stark monumentality from a dense layering of Haussmannian roofs and chimneys, their angular contours delineated in Buffet’s signature black lines. With its somber, monochrome palette of grey-blues and earthy browns, La Tour Eiffel evokes the biting cold of Parisian winters and the atmosphere of a society still haunted by the shadow of the Second World War. The result is at once a portrait of the city and a reflection of the post-war condition: an austere, expressionist realism that captures beauty inseparable from melancholy. Rising above this urban mass, the tower thus becomes more than a landmark: it is transfigured into a symbol of modernity, a stark emblem of the city’s endurance.
It also acts as Buffet’s double in that it embodies all the hopes and expectations placed in Buffet’s persona, then considered the only artist able to save non-abstract Modern painting in Post-War France. By 1958, Buffet had indeed already consolidated his reputation as one of the leading painters of his generation, having won the Prix de la Critique at only 20 years old, being awarded first prize by Connaissance des Arts in 1955, and becoming the subject of a retrospective at Galerie Charpentier the same year this present work was executed.
To request further details about this lot, please email [email protected]
The unlined canvas in overall very good condition, with no sign of inpainting as seen under UV light. Light craquelure visible along the top outer edge of the canvas. We notice a small missing flake at center right, in the sky. With an excess of paint crossing part of the signature at upper right corner. Additional images available upon request.
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The absence of a posted condition report on the Freeman's website or in our catalogues should not be interpreted as commentary on an item's condition. Prospective buyers are responsible for inspecting a lot or sending their agent or conservator to inspect the lot on their behalf, and for ensuring that they have requested, received and understood any condition report provided by Freeman's.
Please email [email protected] for any additional information or questions you may have regarding this lot.
