Cesar Baldaccini, Compression in the Night, from XXe Siecle, 1963
By César Baldaccini
Located in Southampton, NY
This exquisite lithograph by Cesar Baldaccini (1921–1998), titled Compression dans la nuit (Compression in the Night), from the album XXe Siecle, Nouvelle serie, XXVe Annee N°22, Noel 1963, originates from the 1963 edition published by Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris, under the direction of Gualtieri di San Lazzaro, editeur, Paris, and printed by Mourlot Freres, Paris, 1963. Compression dans la nuit reflects Cesar’s fascination with transformation, matter, and the poetic potential of industrial materials, encapsulating his lifelong dialogue between creation and destruction. Executed as a lithograph on velin paper, this work measures 12.5 x 9.75 inches. Unsigned and unnumbered as issued. The edition exemplifies the superb craftsmanship of Mourlot Freres, Paris. Artwork Details: Artist: Cesar Baldaccini (1921–1998) Title: Compression dans la nuit (Compression in the Night), from the album XXe Siecle, Nouvelle serie, XXVe Annee N°22, Noel 1963 Medium: Lithograph on velin paper Dimensions: 12.5 x 9.75 inches (31.75 x 24.77 cm) Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered as issued Date: 1963 Publisher: Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris, under the direction of Gualtieri di San Lazzaro, editeur, Paris Printer: Mourlot Freres, Paris Condition: Well preserved, consistent with age and medium Provenance: From the album XXe Siecle, Nouvelle serie, XXVe Annee N°22, Noel 1963, published by Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris, under the direction of Gualtieri di San Lazzaro, editeur, Paris; printed by Mourlot Freres, Paris, 1963 About the Publication: Gualtieri di San Lazzaro's XXe Siecle (Twentieth Century) was one of the most influential art journals of the modern era, founded in Paris in 1938 as a platform for the greatest painters, sculptors, and writers of the 20th century. San Lazzaro, a visionary editor, critic, and champion of modernism, believed that art and literature should coexist as expressions of a shared human imagination. Under his direction, XXe Siecle became a cultural bridge between Europe and the wider world, publishing special issues devoted to leading figures such as Picasso, Matisse, Chagall, Braque, Calder, Miro, Kandinsky, and Leger. Each edition combined essays by renowned critics and poets with original lithographs and woodcuts printed by the foremost ateliers of Paris, Milan, and New York, including Mourlot, Curwen, and Amilcare Pizzi, creating a uniquely rich dialogue between text and image. Through XXe Siecle, San Lazzaro preserved the creative spirit of the avant-garde during and after World War II, championing freedom of expression and the evolution of abstraction, surrealism, and modern thought. Over nearly four decades, the journal shaped international taste and defined the intellectual landscape of postwar art publishing. Today, XXe Siecle remains celebrated for its extraordinary synthesis of art, literature, and design, an enduring testament to Gualtieri di San Lazzaro's belief that the visual arts are the soul of the modern age. About the Artist: Cesar Baldaccini (1921–1998), known simply as Cesar, was a groundbreaking French sculptor whose radical manipulation of industrial materials redefined the language of modern sculpture and secured his place among the most influential artists of the 20th century. Born in Marseille to Italian immigrant parents, he rose from modest beginnings to international acclaim through his inventive transformation of metal, scrap, and synthetic matter into dynamic works that fused poetry with power. After studying at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Marseille and Paris, he absorbed the innovations of modern masters such as Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray. Like Picasso, Cesar sought to reinvent form through fragmentation; like Calder, he drew inspiration from the mechanics of movement; and like Duchamp, he challenged conventional definitions of art by transforming discarded materials into conceptual masterpieces. His early Fers soudes (welded iron sculptures) of the 1950s revealed his fascination with industrial detritus and the sculptural possibilities of found objects, while his Compressions of the 1960s—created by compacting automobiles and metal waste using hydraulic presses—became iconic symbols of modern industrial society’s power and fragility. These works embodied both destruction and creation, reflecting the aesthetic philosophy of the Nouveau Realisme movement, founded by Pierre Restany, of which Cesar was a central figure alongside Yves Klein, Arman, Jean Tinguely, and Niki de Saint Phalle. His Expansions of the late 1960s and 1970s, made by pouring and allowing liquid polyurethane to expand freely, introduced a radical new sculptural language of chance, energy, and transformation, blurring the boundary between control and spontaneity. With works such as Pouce (Thumb)—a monumental cast of his own thumb—Cesar turned the human form into a symbol of identity, individuality, and creative authorship, while his Human Imprints and Portraits Empreintes captured the immediacy of human presence in enduring bronze. His bold explorations of material and process anticipated later conceptual and environmental art, influencing generations of artists including John Chamberlain, Richard Serra, Anselm Kiefer, Jeff Koons, and Tony Cragg. Both a sculptural innovator and a cultural icon, Cesar designed the Cesar Award—France’s equivalent of the Academy Award—bridging avant-garde experimentation with popular recognition. His works are held in major institutions such as the Centre Pompidou (Paris), the Tate Modern (London), the Museum of Modern Art (New York), and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection (Venice), reflecting his enduring global impact. Standing alongside Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray, Cesar Baldaccini remains a towering figure of postwar modernism—a sculptor who turned compression, expansion, and transformation into metaphors of contemporary existence. His highest auction record was achieved by Compression "Ricard" (Compression Ricard) (1962), which sold for $2.41 million USD at Sotheby’s, Paris, on December 5, 2018, affirming his legacy as one of the most visionary, provocative, and collectible artists of the modern era. Cesar Baldaccini Compression dans la nuit, Cesar Compression...
1960s Surrealist César Baldaccini Art
Lithograph
