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Galerie Raf Van Severen
Elena Laverón (Spain, Ceuta, 1938) Pareja Sentada (Seating Couple), 1975 Cast bronze with dark patina H 170 x W 193 x D 116 cm Edition of 3 + 2 AP Literature: Antonio Abad, 'Elena Laverón, The flight of forms', 1987, p. 168; Juan Ibáñez Plaza (com.), 'de Elena Laverón', Roquetas de Mar (Almería), Ayuntamiento de Roquetas de Mar, 2008, p. 115; Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Telmo de Málaga, Anuario 2016 (n° 16), Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Telmo, 2016, p. 389; Tania Fernández de Toledo, Raya Fayad, Sotheby's France, 'UNESCO: La collection d'art', 2017, p. 431 Reference: in 1993, Pareja Sentada was installed at UNESCO's Bonvin building In 1936, the French-language premiere of Arnold Schoenberg’s monodrama Erwartung was staged at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, with Jean Brusselmans commissioned to design the sets. 'Decor for Erwartung' is a study for the fourth scene of the drama. In this scene, the female protagonist, desperately searching for her lover, comes across a road in the middle of a forest. To her horror, she discovers his lifeless body lying beside a lonely house. Brusselmans’ distinctive painting style, characterised by its return to simplicity and its deliberately alienated figures, makes it remarkably easy to imagine what the stage sets must have looked like during the actual performance. The work offers the viewer an endless source of imagination. Combined with the fascinating history behind its creation, these qualities make 'Decor for Erwartung' an absolute masterpiece.
Verdini Antiques
Enrico Podio (Active 1840-1890 between Rome and Venice) Micromosaic centre table, 1873 Polychrome micromosaic, patinated, cast and chased bronze H 100 x Ø 125 cm Signed and dated 'Enrico Podio fecit' and 'Venezia 1873' This exceptional table is one of the most ambitious expressions of nineteenth-century Venetian micromosaic. Its distinction lies in the rare combination of monumental scale, extraordinary technical refinement, documented authorship and a fully integrated sculptural bronze base. Micromosaic is more often associated with small cabinet objects. Here, Enrico Podio expands the technique to a table, transforming a traditionally intimate art into a commanding architectural statement. The head of Medusa is modelled through minute glass tesserae with subtle changes of flesh tone, shadow, hair and serpent scales. The optical blending approaches the effects of painting while remaining unmistakably mosaic. The inscriptions 'ENRICO PODIO FECIT' and 'VENEZIA 1873' give the work unusual documentary precision, securely identifying the maker, place and date and anchoring the table within the mature Venetian revival of mosaic art. The patinated, cast and chased bronze pedestal is conceived as an integral part of the design. Its classical heads, masks, architectural members and zoomorphic details create a powerful counterpoint to the brilliant colour of the micromosaic top. The synthesis of rarity, scale, technical mastery, documented authorship and visual impact places this table among the most impressive examples of nineteenth-century Italian decorative arts.
Heutink Ikonen
‘Weep not for Me, Mother’ Russia, mid 17th century Egg tempera on gesso on linen-covered wood 31 x 26 cm Provenance: private collection, Belgium; Morsink Ikonen, Amsterdam Among the most moving images of Orthodox art is the icon known as ‘Weep Not for Me, Mother’. Its title is drawn from the liturgy of Holy Saturday, where Christ addresses his grieving mother from the tomb: 'Weep not for Me, O Mother... for I shall arise and be glorified…' The icon depicts a moment between the crucifixion and the Resurrection: the profound silence of Holy Saturday. Christ stands or rises from the tomb, whilst the Mother of God tenderly embraces him and mourns for him. The intensity of their encounter lends the image an extraordinary emotional power. Although the scene may remind Western viewers of the Pietà, its spiritual focus is different. Whilst the Pietà centres on the grief of the Blessed Virgin, ‘Weep Not for Me, Mother’ looks forward to Easter and the promise that death does not have the final say.
Van Herck-Eykelberg
Léon Spilliaert (Ostend 1881-1946 Brussels) The White Domino, 1912 India ink, gouache, crayon on paper on cardboard 88.5 x 67.5 cm Signed and dated top right ‘L. Spilliaert / 1912’ The work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné currently in preparation by Ms. Anne Adriaens Pannier Provenance: Ms Madeleine Spilliaert, Brussels; Ms. Irmingarde van Rossum, Brussel (2000); De Vuyst, Lokeren, 2016, Moderne en Hedendaagse Kunst, n° 163, cat. 163; private collection, Belgium Exhibition: 2000 Knokke, Casino, Léon Spilliaert (1881-1946). Onbekende werken. Oeuvres inédites. Unbekannte Werke. Unseen works, 6 May-18 June 2000; verlenging: 23 June-3 September 2000: cat. 41, ill. in colour p. 77
Gallery Sofie Van de Velde
Georges Vantongerloo (Antwerp 1886-1965 Paris) Spiral with Certain Spots, 1946 Oil on masonite 73.8 x 58.8 cm Signed and dated 'Spirale avec certaines taches Paris 1946 G. Vantongerloo' (title/verso) Provenance: Georges Baines collection (acquired directly from the artist); Bernard Baines; private collection, Switzerland; Galerie Ronny Van de Velde, Antwerp Literature: Georges Vantongerloo, Paintings, Sculptures, Reflections, in Problems of Contemporary Art n° 5, New York, 1948, n° 176, Wittenborn, fig. 44; Georges Vantongerloo: A Traveling Retrospective Exhibition, Corcoran Gallery of Art / Dallas Museum of Fine Arts / Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Loiseau, Brussels 1980, p. 146; Jan Ceuleers, Ronny Van de Velde, Georges Vantongerloo 1886-1965, Antwerp, OCNO, 1996-1997, n° 176, ill. p. 157; Serge Lemoine, Georges Vantongerloo (1886-1965). A Pioneer of Modern Sculpture, Musée Matisse, 2007, ill. p. 148; Larkin Erdmann, Five Years, Zurich, 2019, pp. 83-84; Ostend, Mu.ZEE, Belgium-Argentina. Transatlantic Modernisms, 1910–1958, 2022 Exhibitions: Paris, Palais des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris, 1st Salon des Réalités Nouvelles. Abstract Art, Concrete Art, Constructivism, Non-Figurative, July 1946; Zurich, Kunsthaus Zürich, Antoine Pevsner, Georges Vantongerloo, Max Bill, 15 October-13 November 1949, n° 78; Washington, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Georges Vantongerloo. A Traveling Retrospective Exhibition, 22 April-17 June 1980, n° 176 (later shown in Dallas and Los Angeles); Brussels, Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Georges Vantongerloo 1886-1965, 23 January-16 March 1981, n° 176; Zurich, Kunsthaus Zürich, Georges Vantongerloo, 3 April-17 May 1981, n° 176; Antwerp, Ronny Van de Velde, Georges Vantongerloo 1886-1965, 15 December 1996-31 March 1997, OCNO n° 176; Barcelona, MACBA-Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona, Force Fields: Phases of the Kinetic, 19 April-18 June 2000, n° 232 (later at the Hayward Gallery); Le Cateau-Cambrésis, Musée Matisse, Georges Vantongerloo 1886-1965, A Pioneer of Modern Sculpture, 28 October 2007-2 March 2008 (later at Mu.ZEE); Madrid, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Georges Vantongerloo: A Longing for Eternity, 3 November 2009-22 February 2010
Harold t’Kint de Roodenbeke
René Magritte (Lessines 1898-1967 Brussels) Lilith Original pencil drawing 14.6 x 9.8 cm Signed upper right Provenance: private collection, Paris Literature: Les Lèvres nues, 'Le cache sexe des anges', 1978, ill. p. 9; René Magritte, 'A lab of ideas', 8 may-4 september 2022, Nordiska Akvarellmuseet, Skarhamn, Sweden, n° 164, ill. p. 123; Xavier Canonne, René Magritte, La ligne de vie, 15 November 2025-22 February 2026, KMSKA, Antwerp, Belgium, ill. p. 103. Exhibitions: René Magritte, 'A lab of ideas', 8 May-4 September 2022, Nordiska Akvarellmuseet, Skarhamn, Sweden, n° 164, ill. p. 123; 'René Magritte, La ligne de vie', 15 November 2025-22 February 2026, KMSKA, Antwerp, Belgium, ill. p. 103 Lilith is a complex mythological figure, often regarded in Jewish tradition as Adam’s first wife before Eve, created from the same earth as him. Refusing to submit, she left Eden to become, according to myth, a demoness or succubus of the night, a symbol of rebellion, female independence and the storm. This composition is reminiscent of ‘The Rape – Le viol’, the famous drawing used to illustrate the cover of André Breton’s publication What is Surrealism?
Van Herck-Eykelberg
Paul Delvaux (Antheit 1897-1994 Veurne) Hôtel de Ville, 1953 Watercolour and pen and ink on paper mounted on board 69.5 x 50.5 cm Signed and dated 'P. Delvaux 4.53' Provenance: Albert and Georges Niels, Brussels; Galerie Isy Brachot, Brussels; private collection, Belgium Literature: Jean Stengers, Bruxelles: Croissance d'une capitale, Anvers, 1979, ill. in colour on the cover Exhibitions: Brussels, Le Cercle Royal Gaulois, Bruxelles vu par les artistes, 1959, n° 46, listed (titled L'Hôtel de Ville); Brussels, Galerie Isy Brachot and Paris, Galerie Isy Brachot, Paul Delvaux: dessins, aquarelles et encres de Chine, 1987-88, n° 48, ill. in colour (titled L'Hôtel de Ville de Bruxelles)
Galerie Oscar De Vos
Frits Van den Berghe (Ghent, 1883-1939) The companions, 1932 Oil on canvas 150 x 130 cm Signed lower right 'FVBerghe 32' Provenance: Alla and Bénédict Goldschmidt collection, Brussels Literature: Langui, Frits Van den Berghe en de jongere generatie, in: Kunst-Kultuur, yr. 1, 1940, p. 4; Van Hecke, Frits Van den Berghe, in: Les Peintres Contemporains, 1948, pp. 99-110, cat. 55; Van Hecke, A propos des deux expositions de Frits Van den Berghe, in: Les Arts plastiques, n° 5-6, 1948, pp. 240-242, pl. 55; Haesaerts, Sint-Martens-Latem. Gezegend oord van de Vlaamse kunst, 1965, n° 689; Langui, Frits Van den Berghe. Catalogue raisonné de son oeuvre peint (Bruxelles: Laconte, 1966), n° 396; Langui, Het Expressionisme in België, 1970, pl. 81, p. 128; Hoozee, Tahon-Vanroose & Bown-Taevenier, Frits Van den Berghe, 1983, p. 164; Boyens, Frits Van den Berghe, 1999, pp. 161, 233, n° 132; Boyens, Frits Van den Berghe, 1999, p. 290, n° 753; Pauwels, Als een fonkelenden spiegel, 2019, pp. 296-297 Exhibitions: Frits Van den Berghe en Joseph Cantré, 1933, Ghent, n° 6; Belgisk Konst, 1934, Stockholm, n° 204; Belgisk kunst - Belgisk utstillung av moderne kunst i Norge ordnet ved L'art contemporain i Antwerpen, 1934, Oslo, n° 204; Hedendaagse Belgische Kunst, 1937, Moscow & Leningrad, n° 9; Les Compagnons de l'Art, 1938, Brussels, n° 187; Deurle 6 July 1997 (The Deurle Conversation), 1997, Deurle; 1999, Ostend, Retrospectieve Frits Van den Berghe, n° 132
Laurent Schaubroeck
Rick Owens (USA, Porterville, 1961) Small Plug Table, 2013 Black stained plywood H 41 x W 140 x D 75 cm Stamped Rick Owens 02/08 Edition of 8 + 4 AP Produced in France A monolithic composition in black plywood, the Plug Table reflects Rick Owens’ uncompromising approach to furniture: reduced geometry, architectural weight and an almost brutalist sense of proportion.
De Zutter Art Gallery
Corneille (Liège 1922-2010 Auvers-sur-Oise) Le montagnard, 1950 Oil on canvas 36 x 46 cm Provenance: collection Janssen, Belgium Literature: CoBrA, 'La couleur spontanée', Le Mans, Musée de Tessé 2017-2018 and Musée de Pont-Aven 2018 Exhibition: CoBrA exhibition at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Belgium in Brussels, 2008-2009
Stoppenbach & Delestre
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (Limoges 1841-1919 Cagnes-sur-Mer) Nature morte aux pommes et à poire, circa 1889 Oil on canvas 22 x 31 cm Signed ‘Renoir’ lower right The work is included in the Renoir digital catalogue raisonné project, n° 20411 Provenance: Ambroise Vollard, Paris, acquired from the artist before 1919; Madame de la Chapelle, Paris; Galerie Durand-Ruel, Paris, by whom acquired from the above on 30 March 1938; Dr Albert & Elvira Charpentier, Paris, by whom acquired from above on 14 March 1939; Roberto & Elena Germain-Ribon, by descent from the above; Jacqueline Pizarro, by descent from the above; Sale, Christie’s, London, 22 June 2005, n° 110 (ill. colour); private collection, The Netherlands Literature: Ambroise Vollard, Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Paintings, pastels, and drawings. Tableaux, pastels et dessins, rev. ed. (San Francisco: Alan Wofsy Fine Arts, 1918), p. 306 (ill. fig. 1489); G.-P. & M. Dauberville, Renoir: Catalogue raisonné des tableaux, pastels, dessins et aquarelles, vol. II, 1882-1894, Paris, Bernheim-Jeune, 2009, n° 721, p. 26 (ill. p. 26 dated circa 1889)
Galerie Nicolas Bourriaud
Raymond de Meester (Mechelen 1904-1995 Brussels) Yawning Leopard, circa 1928-1929 Bronze with a nuanced brown patina H 45.2 x W 41.6 x D 15.5 cm Signed ‘Rd de Meester de B’, titled ‘Yawning Leopard’ and dated ‘1928-1929’ Batardy cast, edition of 3, numbered I/III, bearing the stamp ‘BATARDY CIRE PERDUE BRUXELLES’, and the inscriptions ‘Épreuve d’Artiste’ and ‘cire perdue’ Literature: Léonard Dieleman, Raymond de Meester de Betzenbroeck, Animal Sculptor, Gallery Dieleman, Brussels 1989, repr. n° 5; Xavier de Ghellinck Vaernewyck, ‘de Meester de Betzenbroeck’, Nouvelle Biographie Nationale, Part 6, Royal Academy of Belgium, Brussels, 2001, pp. 133–135 With this Yawning Leopard, Raymond de Meester, a leading figure of the Brussels School during the interwar period, once again demonstrates his exceptional ability to capture the anatomy and demeanour of animals with striking realism. While recalling Bugatti’s Reclining Lioness Yawning, which de Meester was probably inspired by, the feline is depicted here in a particularly original pose. An appealing and rare model, this sculpture was cast in an edition of only three examples. This example, numbered 1, is an artist’s proof, as confirmed by the engraved inscription, meaning that the artist personally oversaw its production. This is particularly evident in its beautiful, richly nuanced warm brown patina, to which the sculptor attached great importance, as well as in the high quality of the casting, executed by Batardy.
Harold t’Kint de Roodenbeke
Pol Bury (La Louvière 1922-2005 Paris) L’étourdie, 1945 Oil on canvas 60 x 70 cm Signed lower right and dated 1945 This work is listed in the catalogue raisonné of the Pol Bury paintings under n° PO 46 Provenance: collection C. Matisse, La Louvière; sale Horta, Brussels, 12 October 2009, lot 208; private collection, Liège Literature: José Vovelle, 'Le surréalisme en Belgique', Brussels, André De Rache éditeur, 1972, p. 248, ill. p. 308; Viviane Baras-Flament, 'Pol Bury, 2014', bibliographical reference, 1974, ill. pl III; Philippe Roberts-Jones, Naissance et triomphe du surréalisme en Wallonie', 1975, ill. p. 297; Robert Hoozee, Piet Boyens, Inge Henneman, Monique Tahon-Vanroose, Helke Lauwaert, Serge Goyens de Heusch, Ronny Gobyn, 'L’art moderne en Belgique 1900-1945', Antwerp, Fonds Mercator, 1992, ill. p. 312; Rosemarie E. Pahlke, 'Pol Bury', Ghent, Crédit communal, 1994, pp. 102-103, cat 45-6, ill. p. 103; Histoire de ne pas rire, le surréalisme en Belgique, Bozar et Fonds Mercator, 2024, ill. p. 152 Exhibitions: Galerie Lou Cosyn, Brussels, Pol Bury, Juin 1946, n° 9; Musée des Beaux Arts de Liège, 'L’apport Wallon au surréalisme', October-November 1955, ill. n° 4; La Louvière, 'Introduction au surréalisme en Belgique, community hall, April-May 1969, n° 8; Kunstverein Hamburg, 'René Magritte et le surréalisme en Belgique', January-March 1982, n° 3, ill. p. 229; Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna, Rome, April-July 1982; Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, September-December 1982; Château de Waroux, Alleur, 'Pol Bury, du surréalisme aux ramollissements', April-June 2010; Château de Waroux, Alleur, 'De Dali à Magritte, l’aventure surréaliste', March-July 2011 Pol Bury, an artist and sculptor known worldwide for his kinetic works, began his career in the late 1930s. He met the poet Achille Chavée, who introduced him to the Hainaut Surrealist Group: ‘Rupture’. He also spent time with René Magritte, whom he admired. He contributed to the journal 'L’invention collective', launched by Raoul Ubac and René Magritte around 1940. His surrealist works, in the spirit of his mentor Magritte, were exhibited in 1945 at the International Exhibition of Surrealism at the Galerie des éditions la Boétie in Brussels. This work is one of the most iconic of his Surrealist period.
Artimo Fine Art
Émile Jespers (Antwerp, 1862-1918) Reclining female nude on a wave, circa 1907 Model created in 1907 Carrara marble H 36 x W 70 cm Signed on the base 'E. Jespers' This refined Carrara marble depicts a reclining female nude stretched across a dynamically carved rocky form evocative of a breaking wave. Resting on her forearms, her head gently raised and turned towards the viewer, the figure follows a long, sinuous movement from the shoulders through the waist and hips to the crossed legs. Jespers exploits the contrasting treatment of the marble to reinforce the composition. The smooth, highly polished surface of the female body emerges from the vigorously worked base, whose rougher texture and irregular contours suggest the movement of water. The sweeping silhouette of the figure follows the rhythm of the wave beneath her, closely associating the female body with the natural element. The composition belongs to the Symbolist and Art Nouveau exploration of the relationship between the female figure and nature that developed in Belgian sculpture around the turn of the twentieth century. It may notably be considered in relation to Charles Van der Stappen’s La Mer of 1902, conceived for Victor Horta’s Hôtel Solvay in Brussels, in which the female figure is similarly associated with the imagery of the sea. The plaster model is documented in 1907 through signed and dated versions of the composition, described as a reclining female nude and, more explicitly, as a nude woman reclining on a wave. The present Carrara marble corresponds closely in composition and dimensions to this documented example.
Virginie Devillez Fine Art
Théo Van Rysselberghe (Ghent 1862-1926 Saint-Clair) Baie de Saint-Brélade, 1907 OIl on canvas 65.5 x 81 cm Monogrammed and dated '07' lower left Titled on the stretcher Provenance: private collection, Belgium; thence by descent to the present owner Literature: Ronald Feltkamp, 'Théo Van Rysselberghe. Catalogue raisonné', les éditions de l’amateur/Éditions Racine, 2003, CR 1907-003 (ill. p. 363) Exhibitions: Paris, Bernheim-Jeune, 'Théo van Rysselberghe', 1908, cat. n° 43; Rotterdam, Rotterdamse Kunstkring, 'Théo van Rysselberghe', 1909, cat. n° 29; Groningen, Galerie Hofsteenge, 'Pictura Théo van Rysselberghe', 1910, cat. n° 24; Berlin, Ausstellungshaus Kurfürstendam, 'Sezession', 1912, cat. n° 231 (?)