PAUL GUIRAGOSSIAN | Exode a l'Aurore (Exodus at Dawn)

Collection of the Artist, Beirut
Collection of Mr. Tusuzian, Beirut (acquired directly from the above)
Thence by descent 
Acquired directly from the above by the present owner in 2016

Beirut, Galerie L'Amateur, Paul Guiragossian, 1967

Condition: This work is in good condition. Upon closer inspection, some very faint and stable horizontal craquelure across the lower center area with an additional minor 1cm stable craquelure to the upper left area, all in line with the age of the painting and the heavy impasto. A very faint pinhole sized dent to the center right of the painting. Part of the varnish has been lost; the work could benefit from being re-varnished. The canvas is well stretched. Some very faint retouching on the upper section under the UV light. Colours: The colours in the catalogue illustration are accurate, with the varnish giving a sense of the canvas undulating, which is not the case in the original.
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Sotheby's is honoured to offer seven rare works from 1950s to 1970s by Lebanese artist Paul Guiragossian. Born in Jerusalem in 1925 to Armenian parents, both survivors of the Armenian genocide, Paul Guiragossian experienced exile from a very young age. Around 1948, the Guiragossians were evacuated from Palestine by the British and sent to Lebanon, which was to become the artist’s home and source of inspiration from which his career would spring, a career which saw him soon gain international prominence as an artist. Guiragossian’s paintings and drawings express the vagaries and sufferings of the human condition with brilliant intricacy. Through his application of colour, delineation of form and careful abstraction, his works reveal raw memories of his Palestinian exile, struggle, lineage and exploration of the theme of maternity. His line drawings reveal an expressive style with flowing studies of clothed figures, whereas his paintings conjure up more solid forms through his thick and extended brushstrokes. It is no surprise that the maternal female figure as well as religious themes appear again and again in this artist’s extensive portfolio of works from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. In Collective Praying, Visiting the Newborn, Family in Waiting and Virgin Mary I & II, Guiragossian draws on themes from his own experience as the son of a single mother of Christian faith; to produce a vivid range of tones and expressions, declaring his admiration for the nurturing role of women and religion at the heart of Arab society. The artist explains, “The woman is constantly present in my paintings, my drawings, because she is Love, Childhood, Suffering and Peace. She is the one who is against sending her son and husband to wars.”



The authenticity of this work has kindly been confirmed by The Paul Guiragossian Foundation, Beirut. We would like to thank the Foundation for their assistance and support in researching this painting.