PIASA organizes a Modern and Contemporary Art auction on Wednesday, June 1st, 2022.
Featuring 42 lots, this auction offers a remarkable panorama of 20th and 21st century art through a selection of pieces that are particularly rare on the market. True to its commitment to the French scene, PIASA presents collectors artworks by leading artists such as Germaine Richier, Jean Dubuffet, Maurice Estève, Raymond Hains and Jacques Majorelle.
Born in Nancy in 1886, Jacques Majorelle (1886-1962) was the son of the famous cabinetmaker Louis Majorelle. Immersed from an early age in the Art Nouveau movement of the Ecole de Nancy, and regularly attending his father's workshops, it was quite natural that he began to paint.
From 1903, he chose to leave Nancy to begin his career as a painter in Paris. A keen traveller, he spent time in Spain, Italy and finally in Egypt in 1910, where he was deeply influenced by Islamic art.
"Scutari", represented here, is located in Üsküdar, one of the 39 districts of Istanbul. Majorelle stopped there during the summer of 1912 on his way back to France, following his second stay in Egypt.
Jacques Majorelle
Les cyprès du cimetière de Scutari, Constantinople, 1912
Estimate: 15 000 / 18 000 €
On the front :
Tempera on paper laid down on cardboard
On the reverse :
Étude d'un personnage en manteau
The cemetery is famous; Théophile Gautier devoted a chapter of "Constantinople" to it. He depicts this vast Muslim necropolisn detailing the traditional Turkish tomb in all its details.
The composition is very sober, bringing a sense of calm and serenity to the painting. However, this representation of cypresses already reflects his attachment for the East, its colours, its lights and its customs.
Majorelle moved to Marrakech in 1917, which marked the beginning of his journey through Morocco, especially the Atlas Mountains.
