Kees van Dongen

Galerie René Drouet, Paris
Mr. & Mrs. Neison Harris, Chicago (acquired from the above on October 8, 1985)
Private Collection, United States (by descent from the above and sold: Christie's, New York, November 1, 2005, lot 18)
Richard Green, London 
Acquired from the above 

Tokyo, Tokyo Shimbun/Isetan Shinjuku, Van Dongen Exposition, 1978, no. 13

Canvas is unlined. Surface is clean, colors are vibrant and a lively impasto surface is well preserved. A few strokes of paint on the back of the canvas. The stretcher is painted in various colors. One small area of surface scratching in the darker pigments on the top of the omnibus at right. Some cracking in the green and blue pigment in the bottom of the structure at left. Under UV light a few scattered dots of inpainting in the rounded dome atop the structure at left, otherwise fine. This work is in very good condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Van Dongen moved from Holland to Paris and in 1900 he settled in Montmartre, a neighborhood made famous by its artistic milieu. It was during this early but pivotal period that he painted several dramatic scenes of the night life he encountered there. Relatively unknown as an artist at the time, he struggled with finances and worked several odd jobs just to keep his family fed. However in 1904 van Dongen’s career took a turn for the better when Ambroise Vollard’s gallery included his work in an exhibition and subsequently contributed two pictures to the famous “salle des Fauves” at the 1905 Salon d’Automne, which publicly introduced the vanguard Fauve output of such masters as Derain, Vlaminck and Matisse. The success of the Salon led to van Dongen’s first solo exhibition at Galerie Druet and ultimately his representation by Galerie Bernheim-Jeune, the legendary gallery that exhibited some of the most successful artists of the twentieth century, including Bonnard, Matisse and Modigliani. At last van Dongen gained recognition for his artwork, and soon he became one of the most pursued portraitists of his time.

In the present work, the artist depicts a rainy night at the Place Pigalle at the base of Montmartre. He captures the energy of the lively scene, which brings focus upon a crowd of passersby beneath a bright theatre marquee that illuminates the composition. Positioned atop the image is the brilliant beacon of the famed Sacré-Cœur. The vibrant green, yellow and red highlights of the bustling Parisian scene offer a sharp contrast to the black night sky; indeed these pigments are characteristic of van Dongen’s bold approach to color that earned him the place at the forefront of the European avant-garde. According to Marcel Giry, “in fact, it can be said that [Bonnard & Matisse] were motivated by a desire to rearrange the perceptible world, adding their own lyrical note, and that their technique was the same in each case, consisting of the vigorous application of pure colors... Van Dongen, however, breaks down some of his colors under the influence of light in order to suggest the enveloping atmosphere” (Marcel Giry, Fauvism: Origins and Development, New York, 1981, p. 84).