Ian Ehling
Head of Department
Art, Illustration and Fine Press
Lot 48
LOVE LETTERS OF SAM FRANCIS. FRANCIS, SAM. 1921-1994. 6 Autograph Letters Signed ("Sam") and one Autograph Note Signed, 15 pp recto and verso, 4to and 8vo, Santa Monica, CA and Bern, Switzerland, May 17 to November 12, 1963, to Amalia de Schulthess, mentioning gossip about neighbors and mutual friends, expressing longing, and discussing his work.
13 December 2022, 11:00 EST
New YorkSold for US$10,200 inc. premium
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LOVE LETTERS OF SAM FRANCIS.
FRANCIS, SAM. 1921-1994. 6 Autograph Letters Signed ("Sam") and one Autograph Note Signed, 15 pp recto and verso, 4to and 8vo, Santa Monica, CA and Bern, Switzerland, May 17 to November 12, 1963, to Amalia de Schulthess, mentioning gossip about neighbors and mutual friends, expressing longing, and discussing his work.
WITH: "I Love Your Lips." Watercolor on paper, unsigned, 98 x 225 mm, in original transmittal envelope signed ("Sam Francis") and postmarked April 21, 1963.
AND WITH: Cablegram sent from Santa Monica to Italy with epigrammatic message.
Some toning and thumbing overall.
In 1963, LA-based artists Sam Francis and Amalia de Schulthess enjoyed a passionate affair. De Schulthess decamped to Italy for the spring and summer, which is where many of these letters are addressed. Finally, Francis followed de Schulthess to Europe where they were briefly reunited before the relationship collapsed under its own weight.
In these letters Francis is romantic, bitter, concerned about his health and his output, grateful to de Schulthess who has allowed him the use of her studio while he searches for one of his own. Excerpts include:
From August 24, 1963: "Being the way I don't sound but the way I am I am not sure what I am but the target of your barbed words which makes me wonder if you don't think of me almost as much as I think and dream on you."
From August 27, 1963: "... Saturday I went to the studio and began to work. It saved my nervous system from some kind of crisis. I have been unable to paint since my days were filled with lithography work & house hunting and I haven't been able to find a suitable studio. However Saturday on the way to your studio I found a house to rent!"
From November 12, 1963: "From Owl to Dolphin to Tiger / Night and dark sea haunts. / And you continue to ghost my nights."
WITH: "I Love Your Lips." Watercolor on paper, unsigned, 98 x 225 mm, in original transmittal envelope signed ("Sam Francis") and postmarked April 21, 1963.
AND WITH: Cablegram sent from Santa Monica to Italy with epigrammatic message.
Some toning and thumbing overall.
In 1963, LA-based artists Sam Francis and Amalia de Schulthess enjoyed a passionate affair. De Schulthess decamped to Italy for the spring and summer, which is where many of these letters are addressed. Finally, Francis followed de Schulthess to Europe where they were briefly reunited before the relationship collapsed under its own weight.
In these letters Francis is romantic, bitter, concerned about his health and his output, grateful to de Schulthess who has allowed him the use of her studio while he searches for one of his own. Excerpts include:
From August 24, 1963: "Being the way I don't sound but the way I am I am not sure what I am but the target of your barbed words which makes me wonder if you don't think of me almost as much as I think and dream on you."
From August 27, 1963: "... Saturday I went to the studio and began to work. It saved my nervous system from some kind of crisis. I have been unable to paint since my days were filled with lithography work & house hunting and I haven't been able to find a suitable studio. However Saturday on the way to your studio I found a house to rent!"
From November 12, 1963: "From Owl to Dolphin to Tiger / Night and dark sea haunts. / And you continue to ghost my nights."