Wifredo Lam

Pierre Matisse Gallery, New York (acquired from the artist)

Acquavella Galleries, New York

Albert Loeb, Paris

Acquired from the above circa 1985

New York, Pierre Matisse Gallery, Lam Paintings, 1944

New York, Pierre Matisse Gallery, Wifredo Lam, Early Works 1942-1951, 1982, no. 5

Madrid, Museo Nacional de Arte Contemporáneo, Homenaje a Wifredo Lam 1902-1982, 1982-1983, no. 40

Brussels, Musée d'Ixelles & Paris, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Wifredo Lam, 1902-1982, 1983, no. 66

Paris, Galerie Boulakia, Wifredo Lam, l’oiseau du possible, oeuvres de 1930 à 1978, 2004

l'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, Musée Campredon - Maison René Char, Lam et les poètes, 2005, no. 30

Max-Pol Fouchet, Wifredo Lam, Barcelona/Paris, 1976, no. 375, illustrated p. 233

Max-Pol Fouchet, Wifredo Lam, Barcelona/Paris, 1989, no. 407, illustrated p. 253

Lou Laurin-Lam & Eskil Lam, Wifredo Lam, Catalogue Raisonné of the Painted Work, Lausanne, 1996, vol. I: 1923-1960, no. 44.06, illustrated p. 342

Very good condition. The thick paper has been mounted to a canvas. The medium is vibrant, intact and in excellent condition. There is a small horizontal repair (approximately 1 inch) along the top edge of the sheet. Tiny hairline abrasion visible in the blue about 1/12 inch down from the top right edge, and three tiny faint scratches near the left edge at center in the yellow. The artist's four tacking holes, which have been filled, are visible in the four corners. A shallow crease is faintly visible through the blue orb at the top left. Over all, 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.

L’Enchanteur (Femme assise) is exemplary of the New World Surrealist aesthetic that defined Lam's most successful compositions.  Painted three years after returning to his native Cuba from war-torn France, this picture from 1944 evidences Lam's incorporation of the Surrealist and Cubist techniques and iconography that he had absorbed from Miró and Picasso with the Afro-Carribbean aesthetic and subject matter of his homeland.  It was during this prolific period that he painted his critically-acclaimed 1943 masterwork La Jungle, which now resides in the collection of The Museum of Modern Art, New York.  Both that picture and the present work feature dazzling chromatic effects that evoke the hypnotic, mysterious rhythm of voodoo rituals and the lush palette of his tropical surroundings.

With Enchanteur (Femme assise), Lam embraces local folklore, presenting a Shamanistic female character enraptured in prayer.  The figure's mask-like face recalls African wood carvings and the proto-Cubist renderings of Picasso, which Lam no doubt saw in Paris.  But it is most likely the influence of his godmother, the Santeria priestess Mantonica Wilson, who inspired the present work. Lam spoke candidly of his relationship with this imposing maternal figure in conversations with his friend Aimé Césaire: “Mantonica Wilson, my godmother, had the power to conjure the elements ... I visited her in her house filled with African idols. She gave me the protection of all the gods: of Yemanja goddess of the sea, of Shango, god of war, of Ogun-Feraille, god of metal who each morning gilded the sun, and always Olorun, the supreme god of creation” (quoted in Aimé Césaire, Moi, 1982).