ANTONIO SAURA | Annie dans son fauteuil

Collection Z, Brussels

Venice, Centro Internazionale delle Arti e del Costume, Campo Vitale: mostra internazionale d'arte contemporaneo, July - October 1967; catalogue, np., illustrated in colour
Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Antonio Saura, 11 October - 25 November 1979; catalogue, np., no. 178, illustrated in colour

Cimaise, Art et Architecture Actuels, Paris, Antonio Saura, 1968, np., illustrated
Saura, éditions Yves Rivière, Switzerland, 1980, p.147, no. 247, illustrated in colour
Gérard de Cortanze, Antonio Saura, Paris, 1994, p. 313, illustrated in colour

The colours in the printed catalogue illustration are fairly accurate. The work was executed on its original canvas and has not been relined. Two small areas of the composition present stabilized faint cracks (on the torso and the head of the figure), visible under very close inspection. The canvas is slightly dirty. The 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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

© Succession Antonio Saura/ www.antoniosaura.org/ A + V Agencia de Creadores Visuales 2018

Fascinated by Velázquez and Goya since childhood, Antonio Saura reconciled like no other painters of his generation the legacy of great Spanish painting and the contributions of the most radical post-war avant-gardes.

While at the beginning of his career he developed a vocabulary similar to the one used by surrealists, especially Miró and Tanguy, Saura emerged in the mid-50s as a pioneering figure of a gestural and expressive painting of which Annie dans son fauteuil is emblematic. Between the Europeans informalists and the American abstract expressionists, the artist drew on the theme of head-and-shoulder portrait, which allowed him to follow once again in the footsteps of his illustrious predecessors with a very classic female portrait in close shot, while at the same time standing out for his treatment of space and his use of a dark and enigmatic color palette.

Confronted to the violence of Spain under Franco's rule, and traumatised by the bombings of Madrid he witnessed at the age of 6, and, a year later, by the newspaper images his father showed him of the Condor legion destroying Guernica, Saura also elaborated an aesthetic of terror close to that of Francis Bacon, the other master of obscene beauty. Similarly, Saura gave shape to darkness and created frightening and fascinating portraits, of which Annie dans son fauteuil remains the best example, as it captures all the mindsets of artistic creation with a rare dramatic intensity.



The authenticity of this work has been confirmed by the Fondation Archives Antonio Saura. This work is eligible for a certificate of authenticity upon the buyer's request.