London – Bonhams will hold its first London 20th/21st Century Art Evening Sale on Thursday 10 October at Bonhams New Bond Street. Leading the sale – which includes works by artists such as Vincent van Gogh, Chaïm Soutine, René Magritte, Frank Auerbach and George Condo – will be the surrealist paintings L'Orage by Paul Delvaux (1897-1994), which has an estimate of £1,200,000 - 1,800,000, and Mélusine by René Magritte (1898-1967), which has an estimate of £1,400,000-1,800,000.

Ralph Taylor, Bonhams Global Head of 20th/21st Century Art, commented: "This is a sale of true modern masters, and I can think of no better line-up for our inaugural 20th/21st Century Art Evening Sale in London."

One of the highlights of the sale will be Portrait d'homme (peut-être Achille Richard) by Chaïm Soutine (1893-1943), which has an estimate of £700,000 - 900,000. The work, which has never before been offered at auction, has not been publicly displayed for nearly half a century.

Hannah Noel-Smith, Bonhams Head of Impressionist and Modern Art department, commented: "Soutine's early paintings are exceptionally scarce: the artist had a habit of tracking down his earlier works and systematically destroying those he deemed to no longer meet his exacting standards. Even more exceptional is the rarity of Soutine's portraits of his friends. He typically preferred anonymous models, as his expectations were higher when it came to portraying those in his close circle, such as his fellow painter Achille Richard, the presumed sitter for this portrait."

Writing in the Autumn edition of Bonhams Magazine, Mark Hudson, says: "Modigliani and Soutine were key figures in the School of Paris, that loose agglomeration of mostly émigré artists that played such a pivotal role in the development of Modernist painting. And both were clear contenders for the notional title of most tragic artist of the 20th century. Yet while Soutine, ten years younger than Modigliani, might be taken for the junior partner in their relationship, Soutine's reputation has only increased in recent years."

The sale will also include L'Orage by Paul Delvaux (1897-1994). Many artists have been fascinated with dreams, but for Delvaux it was something of an obsession. Though he did not formally identify as a Surrealist, many of his works contained imagery associated with the movement – classical columns, female nudes, and strange weather, for instance – and almost all were set within a dream-like world of his own creation. L'Orage, which was painted in 1962, has an estimate of £1,200,000-1,800,000. To stare at it long enough is to enter into a world where a storm is approaching, what exactly that means to the viewer many depend on their own subconscious.

Another surreal highlight from the sale is Mélusine by René Magritte (1898-1967), which has an estimate of £1,400,000-1,800,000.

Alastair Smart writes in the Autumn edition of Bonhams Magazine: "Now in his mid-fifties, Magritte was in the midst of a creative peak – during which he spoke with ever increasing confidence about his practice. "Art evokes the mystery without which the world wouldn't exist" was among his pronouncements. Mystery is certainly evoked in Mélusine, another painting from 1953. It depicts a pair of golden candlesticks on a ledge. The one on the left contains a candle that has burned out. The one on the right, by contrast, seems to be melting before our eyes, bending under the heat while the lit candle inside it is intact. Such a process defies the laws of physics and the viewer's sense of perceptual logic. It epitomises Magritte's great contribution to Surrealism: images of ordinary things in far-from-ordinary states, settings or combinations."

Another highlight of the 20th/21st Century Art Evening sale is Catherine Lampert Seated by Frank Auerbach (B. 1931) which has an estimate of £350,000 - 550,000.

Renowned especially for his heavy application of paint that masterfully fills his compositions, Auerbach is credited with making some of the most impressive, vibrant, and intuitive portraits of the post-war years.

Catherine Lampert sat for Auerbach regularly from 1978 onwards. She joined the artist in his studio on successive Monday evenings, then by appointment for a number of years, before settling on Friday evenings. Lampert worked at the Hayward Gallery when she first started sitting for Auerbach, before becoming Director of the Whitechapel Gallery in 1988. The work being offered in Bonhams' sale was painted between 1991 and 1992. She would later go on to curate the artist's major retrospective exhibition at the Royal Academy in 2001.

The sale will also include Head of Julia, Profile II by Auerbach, painted in 1989, which has an estimate of £100,000-150,000.

Marina Ruiz-Colomer, Head of Department for Post-War and Contemporary Art at Bonhams commented: "Renowned especially for his heavy application of paint that masterfully fills his compositions, Auerbach is credited with making some of the most impressive, vibrant, and intuitive portraits of the post-war years. His equally beautiful and meticulously rendered charcoal portraits have recently gained attention through a recent exhibition this past Spring at the Courtauld Gallery, London."

Bonhams will also be offering Sien's mother's house seen from the back yard by Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890). Executed in May 1882, only a year after he first took up painting and before he moved to Paris in 1886, the work has an estimate of £800,000-1,200,000.

Other highlights of the sale include Standing nude in the night with bubbles by George Condo (B. 1957), which was painted in 1999 and has estimate of £350,000 - 550,000, and Cantilever by Alexander Calder (1898-1976), which was executed in 1973 and has an estimate of £1,000,000 - 1,500,000.

A native of Pennsylvania, Calder was born into a family of sculptors. His first solo show was held in Paris in 1927 while he was still in his twenties; he would soon become one of America's most lauded and prolific artists. It was Marcel Duchamp who first dubbed Calder's kinetic wire sculptures "mobiles," - these hanging, interactive pieces would come to define the artist's legacy.

The 20th/21st Century Art Evening Sale will be followed by sales of Post-War & Contemporary Art and Impressionist and Modern Art, which will both take place on Friday 11 October at Bonhams New Bond Street.

Highlights from the Post-War & Contemporary sale include:

• Frank Auerbach (B. 1931), Head of David Landau (Painted between 2012-2013). Estimate: £300,000-500,000.

• Yayoi Kusama (B. 1929), Infinity Nets (Painted in 1990). Estimate: £100,000 - 150,000.

• Fernando Botero (1932-2023), Maternidad. 47 x 19.5 x 32cm (18 1/2 x 7 11/16 x 12 5/8in). (Conceived in 1955, in an edition of 6 plus 2 artist's proof). Estimate: £150,000 - 200,000.

Highlights from the Impressionist and Modern Art sale includes:

• Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita (1886-1968), Nu assis (Painted in Paris in 1929). Estimate: £500,000 - 700,000.

• Auguste Rodin (1840-1917), Cariatide tombée portant sa pierre, petit modèle (Conceived circa 1881, this version cast by the Alexis Rudier foundry in an edition of over 12 between 1902 and 1951 including five after 1940). Estimate: £120,000 - 180,000.

• Auguste Rodin (1840-1917), Baiser, 4ème réduction ou petit modèle (Conceived in 1886 and in this reduced size in 1898, this bronze version cast by the Barbedienne foundry between February and October 1907). Estimate: £120,000-180,000.

18 September 2024