Lot 3216 - A185 Impressionist & Modern Art - Friday, 29. June 2018, 04.00 PM
KEES VAN DONGEN
(Rotterdam 1877–1968 Monte Carlo)
Danseuse. Circa 1906-10.
Oil on paper, on cardboard.
Signed lower right: Van Dongen
64 x 49.2 cm.
Provenance:
- Otto and Helene Welter, Waldkirch, presumably bought in the 1920s.
- Private collection, Switzerland, by descent from the above to the present owners.
Literature: Hopmans, Anita: Van Dongen retrouvé. L’œuvre sur papier, 1895-1912, p. 248.
This work is from an important private Swiss collection of French Expressionism which dates back to the 1920s. It has remained in the same family until the present day, and is now being offered for the first time at auction.
The Paris nightlife, with all its lights, colours and shapes, fascinated and impressed Kees van Dongen like no other Fauvist artist. He captured the modern existence and the decadence of the prevailing society on his canvases with authenticity. Of Van Dongen's Parisian night scenes, the most sensual paintings are those of his two greatest muses, Nini La Parisi and Anita La Bohémienne. The latter was a belly dancer whose exoticism possessed an extreme allure over Van Dongen, not least because of her gypsy origin. He met her at one of the clubs in Pigalle and finally managed to encourage her to become his model. In addition to the present work, which illustrates La Bohémienne’s contours with expressive movement and bright colours, Van Dongen created a series of studies and oil paintings showing the beautiful dancer, such as “La danse d’Anita” (ill. 1), “Danseuse Indienne” and “La belle Fatima et sa troupe”. The dancers in Van Dongen's work radiate a vitality and freedom detached from social constraints and reflect his fascination for the human body and its movements. It is in these depictions of Anita that Van Dongen achieves the climax of his wild portrayal of freedom and the joys of gypsy life.
CHF 120 000 / 180 000 | (€ 123 710 / 185 570)
Sold for CHF 144 500 (including buyer’s premium)
All information is subject to change.