Jean-Paul Riopelle

Galerie Jacques Dubourg, Paris
Arthur Tooth & Son, London
Sale: Christie's London, Post-War and Contemporary Art, 2 December 1971, Lot 101
Sale: Christie's London, Post-War and Contemporary Art, 29 March 1977, Lot 66
Private Collection, South Germany

Yseult Riopelle, Jean Paul Riopelle Catalogue Raisonné, 1954-1959, Vol.II, Montreal 2004, p. 206 no. 1955.047H.V1956, illustrated

Colour: The colours in the catalogue illustration are fairly accurate, although the overall tonality is warmer and richer in the original. Condition: This work is in very good condition. There are hairline drying cracks to the thicker areas of pigment scattered in places throughout. Visible only upon close inspection, there are a small number of losses to the impasto peaks with a further loss towards the centre of the top edge and in a few places elsewhere. Examination under ultra-violet light reveals a small number of spots that fluoresce along all four extreme edges and a few further spots in the body of the composition.
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"For me, a painting is never the reproduction of an image. It always starts with a vague feeling...the desire to paint...Not a clear idea. The painting starts where it wants...but after, everything falls into place." The Artist cited in: Yseult Riopelle, Jean-Paul Riopelle Cataogue Raisonné, 1954-1959, Vol.II, Montreal 2004, p. 51

 

The present work is an exceptional example of Jean-Paul Riopelle's work from one of the most significant years of the artist's lauded oeuvre. The expressive and physical complexity of this gem-like work breathes a sense of exuberance and life into the canvas, encouraging the viewer's eye to dance across the rich plum surface. By the mid 1950's, Riopelle began to sculpt the surface of his works with the palette knife, introducing glittering facets resembling precious stones and creating an expressive depth unprecedented for the artist. Evidenced in this work is the extraordinary dialogue that the artist created between colour, form and texture. Utilizing dollops of paint squeezed directly from the tube, Riopelle criss-crosses across the paints and the surface, imbuing within the work a uniquely mesmerising and kaleidoscopic quality.