Victor BraunerSans titre
1955
Paint, paraffin and Ink on paper, laid down on canvas
Signed and dated Victor Brauner VII 1955
19.69 x 25.59 in ( 50 x 65 cm )ZoomInquiry - Sans titre, 1955
Provenance
Private Collection, Italy
Auction Sale Il Ponte Casa d'Aste, Milano
Private Collection
Christies, London
Private Collection
Artwork's description
This work by Victor Brauner, dating back to 1955 and executed in paraffin, is part of the continuity of his artistic exploration initiated through the use of candle wax, a technique he perfected during the summer of 1943 while working in secrecy.
This creative process, revealed in his correspondence with René Char and André Breton, unveils a unique approach to art. Brauner exploits the possibilities offered by paraffin by layering different coats, which he then covers with ink or oil. Using a sharp object, he delicately scratches the surface, thus allowing the emergence of enigmatic and totemic forms, inspired by his esoteric readings.
The use of modest materials, such as candle wax or paraffin attests to a poetics of constraint unique to Brauner. These simple elements become vehicles for evocative magic, evoking a mythical and mysterious world. In this fusion of innovative techniques and modest materials, Brauner creates a work of original and unknown quality, thus revealing his artistic genius and his ability to transcend the conventional limits of creation.
Artist's biography
Victor Brauner is a Romanian painter, who belonged to the surrealist movement. Brauner was born in 1903 in Piatra Nemt in Romania and died in 1966 in Paris. His childhood was marked by the Great Peasant Revolt in Moldova in 1907 and by his father's spiritualism sessions. He then studied as a teenager at the School of Fine Arts in Bucharest from 1919 to 1921.
In 1932, Brauner became an official member of the surrealist group and from this period, one very often found in his works, a theme that obsessed him: that of the enucleated eye, represented either pierced, pierced with horns or thrown to the ground . A few years later, the artist lost his left eye, during an argument, he was hit in the face by a broken glass. Brauner, was very influenced by the works of Paul Klee, Pablo Picasso, etc.
His characteristic imagery inspired by his personal mythology captivates André Breton who propels him to the center of the surrealist group. Deeply attached to his Romanian roots as well as his unique visual lexicon, Victor Brauner creates striking interpretations of occult divine figures with their own attributes and obscure powers.