Yosl Bergner b. 1920

Bineth Gallery of Fine Art, Jerusalem
Mr. Aharon Sacharov, Israel
Thence by descent
Purchased from the above by the present owner

Original canvas. This work is in very good condition. This work has not yet been examined under UV light.
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The First Rain is an enchanting example of Yosl Bergner's surrealist paintings. Influenced by René Magritte and Paul Delvaux, Bergner sought to break through his own limitations and give free rein to his imagination. While continuing to use his familiar figures, the artist now displaces them in strange landscapes while adding symbolic imagery and titles arousing disturbing, but simultaneously humorous, feelings in the viewer.

In this work, Bergner's wide-eyed subjects calmly stare ahead while welcoming the first rain of the year. In the center of the composition, a fish, a Jewish symbol of fertility also associated with the coming of the Messiah, looks up to await the downpour. The low horizon and stormy sky in the painting remind one of El Greco's religious masterpieces, which greatly moved the artist during his visit to Spain in 1962, and the endless path, in which the figures are seated, all culminate in a dramatic tension of which only the fish is aware.