André Lhote

Maria de Lourdes Camargo, São Paulo

Sale: Sotheby's, London, June 29, 1988, lot 160

Acquired at the above sale

Paris, Grand Palais des Champs Elysées, 16e Salon d'Automne, 1923, no. 1205 (titled Football)

Rio de Janeiro, Acervo Galeria de Arte, Universo do Futebol: Esporte e Sociedade Brasiliera, 1982, no. 5

Bulletin de la vie artistique, November 15, 1923, no. 22, illustrated p. 473

Waldemar George, L'Amour de l'Art, October 10, 1923, no. 10

Florent Fels, 'Interview d'André Lhote dans son atelier', Welt Kunst, January 1931

Roger Brielle, Les Albums d'art Druet, XXXII Paris, 1931, no. 11

Very good condition over all. Original canvas. There is visible craquelure in the more thickly painted areas, and some horitonzal cracking the lighter pigments, particularly in the clouds on the upper left and the pants of the player in the center. Under UV light, there is light, scattered retouching, but mostly concentrated in the following areas areas: in the cloud and the hand shadow in the upper left quadrant; the shirt of the figure at the extreme left and the white pants of the figure in the center; between the feet of the two figures in the center; to the right of the figure's head, wrist and feet at the far right and specks in same figure's shirt and sleeve. The grand majority of this large composition is untouched and in generally 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.

The spectacular Les Joueurs de rugby is the largest and most sophisticated painting of André Lhote's important Rugby series.  Painted in 1920, this monumental composition is perhaps the definitive masterpiece of the artist's career. Depicting a game which had only recently been imported into France, Lhote's choice of subject signalled his commitment to representing contemporary and vibrant aspects of modern life.  "It is fascinating to capture a moving spectacle by freezing it at its crucial phase," the artist wrote about this subject, "at that moment when, like a pendulum at the end of its trajectory, everything seems to become motionless for a second before starting up again in rapid flashes" (cited in Anatole Jakovsky, André Lhote, 48 reproductions commentées par le peintre, Paris, 1947, pp. 251-267. Translated from the French).

In contrast to the more Cubist version of this subject that he completed in 1917, the present work concedes to traditional perspective yet does not lose any of the rhythmic vitality and dynamism of his pre-war rendition.  Lhote explained the rationale behind his aesthetic in this more accomplished picture: "By 1920 joyfulness had returned, and for a brief moment we could reanimate austere wartime compositions with the smile and profound enthusiasm of the new era. I rework my 1917 composition by adding a static figure and drifting clouds. The horizontal configuration of the clouds and the verticality of the isolated player stand out against the oblique lines of the group.  Any painter who is free in his actions, who is not obliged to satisfy any external whim, who wishes to reinvent himself through the most noble means, in other words, through technique, should in the course of his life rework the same composition several times, in order to improve his craft, re-evaluate his feelings and confirm the state of his knowledge" (Ibid.).