An overview of 16 lots covering the major art movements: Art Brut, Nouveau Réalisme, Geometric Abstraction, Supports/Surfaces, Narrative Figuration and Free Figuration
A private collection illustrating the major chapters of post-war and contemporary art, including key works by Bernard Buffet, Auguste Herbin, Victor Vasarely, Aurélie Nemours, François Morellet, Bernar Venet and Jean-Michel Othoniel, as well as works by Laurent Grasso, César and Loris Gréaud
Jean Dubuffet
(1901-1985)
Paysage à l'arbre en fleur, octobre 1952
Huile sur toile
81 × 100 cm
Estimation :
250 000/350 000 €
“This autumn sale offers a journey that is both rigorous and vibrant through the extraordinary flourishing of the post-war French art scene. From the pioneering work on materials by Dubuffet and Fautrier to the unbridled energy of the 1980s, via optical experiments and Narrative Figuration, we have brought together a remarkable collection of works and pieces from private collections that bear witness to the enduring vitality of this period.”
Florence Latieule, Co-Director – Modern & Contemporary Art Department
The auction house PIASA announces its autumn sale dedicated to post-war and contemporary art. Entitled ‘Post-War: French Abstraction and Figuration’, this sale, taking place on Wednesday 18 November 2026 at 6.00 pm, will present a panorama of around one hundred lots tracing the richness of the artistic movements that have shaped the French and European art scene from the 20th century to the present day.
From Art Brut to Nouveau Réalisme, via Geometric Abstraction, Supports/Surfaces, Narrative Figuration and Free Figuration, the sale honours leading figures such as Jean Dubuffet, Jean Fautrier, Victor Vasarely, Bernard Buffet, Arman, Aurélie Nemours, Gérard Schlosser and Hervé Télémaque.
JEAN DUBUFFET & JEAN FAUTRIER, masters of materiality
At the top of the catalogue is a major work by Jean Dubuffet (1901–1985), Paysage à l’arbre en fleur, painted in October 1952. Part of the famous ‘Pâtes battues’ period, this oil on canvas dispenses with classical perspective in favour of a tactile and primal experience of the landscape (estimate: €250,000 / €350,000).
Jean Fautrier
(1898-1964)
Petite magie colorée, 1957
Huile et pigments sur papier marouflé sur toile
Signé et daté en bas à droite
Titré et daté au dos sur le châssis
45 × 54 cm
Estimation :
135 000 / 155 000 €
Reflecting this redefinition of matter, Jean Fautrier (1898–1964) is represented with Petite magie colorée (1957). This work, in oil and pigments on paper mounted on canvas, encapsulates the artist’s obsession with impasto and colour given physical form (estimate: €135,000 / €155,000).
Arman & New Realism
New Realism is spectacularly showcased through two iconic works by Arman (1928–2005). Colère de violoncelle (1970), a monumental 2-metre-high resin casting capturing a shattered cello (estimate: €80,000 / €120,000) and Avant la chance (1989), a diptych combining trampled paint tubes and splashes of colour (estimate: €60,000 / €90,000).
Kinetic Art, Geometric Abstraction & Optical Art
Victor Vasarely (1905-1997) Bathar, 1950
Huile sur toile - 100 × 86 cm
Estimation : 50 000 / 70 000 €
Geometric and optical art is showcased through key works by Victor Vasarely (1905–1997), Bathar (1950), a seminal work that encapsulates the explorations of Op Art (estimate: €50,000 / €70,000), and François Morellet (1926–2016) with Lunatique neonly no. 5 (1997), a tondo combining acrylic and neon tubes (estimate: €50,000 / €70,000). Auguste Herbin (1882–1960), true to his rigorous ‘Alphabet plastique’, will be represented by Terre-Eau n° 1 (1948) (estimate: €30,000 / €40,000), as well as Aurélie Nemours (1910–2005), represented by Rythme du millimètre – Perspective du même II, III (1978/1989) (estimate: €30,000 / €40,000) and Hespérie (1974) (estimate: €20,000 / €30,000).
TWO EXCEPTIONAL COLLECTIONS
The sale showcases a rare collection of nine works by Eugène Leroy (1910–2000), tracing the emergence and development of his highly distinctive style from the 1930s to the 1960s. Through a varied collection comprising oil paintings on canvas, watercolours and pastels, this focus immerses us in the poetic beauty of the landscapes of the North and the Ardennes — from the orchards of Envoz to the coastal horizons of Gravelines and Grand-Fort-Philippe. This selection offers a valuable insight into the artist’s ongoing quest to capture light through the thickness and vibrancy of the paint (estimates from €1,500 to €12,000).
A Private Collection
François Morellet (1926-2016)
Lunatique neonly n° 5, 1997
220 × 165 cm - Diamètre : 120 cm
Estimation : 50 000 / 70 000 €
Curated with passion and rigour, this exceptional collection of 22 lots offers a remarkable journey through the major artistic movements from the post-war period to the contemporary scene. The existentialist figurative art of Bernard Buffet (Tentes sur plage, 1949, estimate: €40,000 / €60,000) features alongside the geometric abstraction of Auguste Herbin, Aurélie Nemours and Victor Vasarely, as well as the radicalism of François Morellet. Sculpture also takes centre stage, embodied by the power of steel in Bernar Venet’s work (Three Indeterminate Lines, 1998, estimate: €20,000 / €30,000), the monumental poetry of Jean-Michel Othoniel’s glass (‘Collier Améthyste’, 2006, estimate: €50,000 / €70,000), and the iconic works of Xavier Veilhan (‘Bird’, 2012, estimate: €25,000 / €35,000), César, Laurent Grasso and Loris Gréaud.
THE ENERGY OF FIGURATION
New Figuration, Narrative Figuration and Free Figuration breathe remarkable vitality into the exhibition through a collection of major works. The world of motoring and pop culture are masterfully depicted in Peter Stämpfli’s Stop (1965), whose close-up framing of a red Plymouth Sport Fury transforms an industrial detail into a powerful geometric object (estimate: €50,000 / €70,000). This creative momentum continues with Niki de Saint Phalle’s Chameau (1967), a unique painted plaster sculpture from her poetic and multicoloured bestiary (estimate: €50,000 / €70,000).
The figurative section is also enriched by narrative works of great finesse, such as Gérard Schlosser’s J’ai eu le truc (1977), an acrylic on sandblasted canvas capturing an intimate fragment of everyday life through his characteristic cinematic framing (estimate: €30,000 / €40,000), and Hervé Télémaque’s En résonnance (1988), a diptych combining painting and object collages (estimate: €25,000 / €35,000).
Peter Stämpfli (1937-2026)
Stop, 1965
Huile sur toile, 110 × 101 cm
Estimation : 50 000 / 70 000 €
The exhibition is punctuated by the rich atmospheres and dramatic tension of Technicolor No. 21, No. 560 (1977) by Jacques Monory (estimate: €25,000 / €35,000), which is counterbalanced by the satirical verve of Eduardo Arroyo’s Un Anonimo mira un cuadro de Fernand Léger (2007) (estimate: €25,000 / €35,000). Finally, Gérard Garouste reinterprets the dialogue between painting and object in Ceci n’est pas un chapeau (2017), an original composition combining oil on canvas and an Alvar Aalto stool at the heart of his exploration of ‘Zeugma’ (estimate: €30,000 / €50,000).
