Lyora Pissarro

Awareness is the Point of Change

2020

Auguste Herbin 1882-1960 French Aoum II Signed and dated 'herbin 1944' (lower right); titled "aoum" 2 (lower left) Oil on canvas This bold and vivid abstract oil on canvas was painted by French painter Auguste Herbin, a pioneer in popularizing Modernist abstraction. Over his expansive nearly 60-year career, Herbin rubbed shoulders with art history greats from Pablo Picasso to Georges Braque before honing his personal and innovative style. Entitled Aoum II, the painting stands apart for its daring color palette and crisp composition. Painted in 1944, Aoum II embodies Herbin’s fully-formed artistic aesthetic and stylistic tenets. Only two years prior to its creation, Herbin developed his “alphabet plastique,” a synergistic visual language of color and form that he described in detail in his published book L’art non-figuratif non-objectif. Though the artist was highly cerebral in his process of creating art, one does not need to perfectly understand his principles to feel Aoum II's magnetism. The geometric shapes visible in the composition — primarily fragmented triangles and circles — are rendered in bold pinks, blues and yellows on a deep black background. His tiered application of color creates a natural three-register visual effect as if to tell a story from the apex of the form to its denouement. Auguste Herbin began his artistic training at the École des Beaux-Arts de Lille before moving to Paris in 1901. In the early years of his career, he experimented with a variety of styles, exhibiting Post-Impressionistic works at the Salon des Indépendants in 1906 and Fauvist paintings at the Salon d'Automne in 1907. After a brief Cubist period following his introduction to Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque and Otto...

Georges Terzian 1939-2021 French Untitled Signed “G.TERZIAN” (upper right); signed, titled and dated “GEORGES TERZIAN MARS 2005” (en verso) Oil on c...

Auguste Herbin 1882-1960 French Composition sur le nom Herbin Signed and dated 'Herbin 1942' (lower right) Oil on canvas This bold and vivid abstract oil on canvas was painted by...

Frank Sinatra 1915-1998 | American Abstract in Pink, Purple, and White by Frank Sinatra Signed and dated "Sinatra '83"(lower right) Oil on canvas Widely considered the greatest Am...

Emprunt 6% Souscrivez (War Loan 6% Subscribe) Signed "Raoul Dufy" (lower right) Gouache on paper This vibrant gouache on paper by the renowned Raoul Dufy is not only a work of exceptional artistry, but also represents an important period in world history. The piece was a special commission ordered by the French government, who sought to encourage the French people to join in the post-war reconstruction efforts. Following World War I, the French government was destitute. The cost of the Great War had been tremendous not only in lives lost, but also in terms of infrastructure and finances. In order to reclaim its place as a great power on the world stage, France needed funds to reconstruct its key industries, and quickly. Thus, the government turned to one of the most famous French artists of the day - Raoul Dufy - to create this gouache on paper as an advertisement for the country's war bonds. The extraordinary work represents Dufy's own sense of patriotic duty. Entirely unique in his oeuvre, it is clear that Dufy wished to create something truly special to help his war-torn country. The artist deftly captures the industry of France in the colorful composition, showcasing bridges, buildings, ships and other key elements of the country's infrastructure in order to evoke the viewers' pride, patriotism and willingness to help. The words Emprunt 6% Souscrivez (War Loan 6% Subscribe) are boldly written across the top, seeking subscribers to a 6% interest loan to help rebuild the country - a very healthy return for the age. The powerful painting represents one of the most effective and extensive patriotic campaigns of all time. France relied heavily on the willingness of its citizens to lend money...

This thoroughly modern Parisian scene was composed by the celebrated French painter Jean François Raffaëlli. The delicate oil captures a familiar subject from late 19th-century life in the city: a busy avenue at the edge of a park on a cool autumn day. Exploring the climate of the city, Raffaëlli's mature works capture the energy of the grand parks and boulevards of the new Paris that emerged at the turn of the century. His legacy documents the realities of urban life during his age, all chronicled in his distinctive brushwork and sophisticated palette. While Raffaëlli was never fully accepted as a member of the Impressionist group, his works display a similar affinity for capturing the transient moments of modern life. His figures exude a sense of being suspended in time, as though they are part of some subtle narrative that is both restless and harmonious. Perhaps more aligned with Naturalism than Impressionism, the visual effect of Raffaëlli's composition is one of carefully composed spontaneity that makes manifest the joie de vivre of the age. Raffaëlli was not the only artist of his era to devote his canvases to the urban landscape. Camille Pissarro, Claude Monet, Gustave Caillebotte and others composed significant works on the subject of the urban milieu. On the whole, it was an entirely new kind of painting, and it was largely influenced by the work of social engineer Baron Haussmann beginning in the 1850s. At the request of Emperor Napoleon III, Haussmann designed and carried out a large-scale urban renewal program, erecting landmarks and tree-lined thoroughfares throughout the city to create a unified and socially-centered urban aesthetic. The city became a glittering stage for modern advancements and bourgeois pleasure, which paved the way for a new kind of subject that was eagerly adopted by the Impressionists and artistic avant-garde. Born in Paris in 1850, Raffaëlli first studied theater and music before turning to painting in 1870. That same year, he submitted a landscape painting to the Salon and was accepted. Aside from just three months studying with the Academic great Jean-Léon Gérôme, Raffaëlli was self-trained, developing his own unique style that brought together Realism, Naturalism and Impressionism. While he managed to exhibit works at both the Salon and the Impressionist exhibitions...

American School, Artist Unknown

This painting is part of our exhibition America Coast to Coast: Artists of the 1940s. Untitled (Biomorphic Composition), 1948, oil on textured paper mounted on board, signed and da...

Laimdots Murnieks had a significant influence on the development of Latvian painting at the end of the 20th century. His work 'Holiday' conveys the feeling lightness and joy, which i...

Laimdots Murnieks had a significant influence on the development of Latvian painting at the end of the 20th century. His work 'Holiday' conveys the fee...

Laimdots Murnieks had a significant influence on the development of Latvian painting at the end of the 20th century. His work 'Holiday' conveys the fee...

Laimdots Murnieks had a significant influence on the development of Latvian painting at the end of the 20th century. His work 'Holiday' conveys the fee...