The surrealist master's Celebrated Surrealist Painting Scheduled for French Auction
An extraordinary artwork by this famed avant-garde painter Magritte which has remained within a single personal possession for over nine decades is scheduled to be auctioned later this month.
The Fascinating History Behind this Artwork
The painting was originally purchased by the relatives belonging to Spaak, an World War II resistance heroine that acted as Magritte's supporter at an time when Magritte had financial troubles economically and had failed to move any piece for two years.
Spaak was shot by Nazi forces in Paris for her efforts to help young Jewish individuals reach safety.
Sale Projections and Anticipations
This auction house has estimated that the artwork may fetch between five million euros and seven million euros, but experts expect that it will achieve a much higher price.
This is the first time I have handled a major Magritte work which has stayed in the same household from it was painted,” remarked a senior auction house official. This is extraordinary, just like the history behind the owners.”
He also described the painting as the superstar in surrealist art,” noting that Were you to ask some schoolchildren to prepare a report about the surrealist movement, this artwork by itself would be enough to define the movement.”
Magritte's Formative Challenges with Career Growth
The Belgian artist initially worked as an artist in a wallpaper factory and produced commercial ads until the mid-1920s, at which point he created his debut surrealist work.
A year later, he had his debut show in Brussels, however reviewers were harsh and disheartened the artist moved to Paris, in which he was unable to make his mark.
Magritte returned to his homeland by 1930 and formed a commercial art business alongside his brother Paul Magritte.
“Life for Magritte was very difficult at this time. The Great Depression which began in the late 1920s in America affected the French economy in the early 1930s. For two years, from 1930 to 1932, he sold no works and had no exhibitions,” the expert explained.
No one was buying paintings by surrealists. They were viewed as revolutionary agitators.”
The Influence of the Benefactors
The husband, Claude Spaak, a well-known Belgian-born playwright, knew the artist and a patron, commissioning portraits of his wife and their kids and arranging a monthly stipend for the artist and his household.
By 1934, Suzanne Spaak’s sister Alice Lorge, called Bunny, acquired La Magie Noire to celebrate the birth of her first child alongside Emile Happe, a Belgian businessman.
“The Spaak family represented for Belgium like the Mountbattens were to the UK; like royalty and they helped Magritte through hard times,” the art specialist commented. The purchase was made to commemorate the arrival of a baby but it was a rebirth for the painter as he was struggling to recover financially.”
Painting Features with Meaning
The subject for the series was his spouse, Georgette Berger, she is portrayed in a classical manner resembling a sculpted figure resting her hand on a block of stone.
Her torso slowly merges with the sky behind her while her lower body retains its natural tone.
The artist went on to paint 10 similar works, many of them received different names. Here, the first in the series, Berger is portrayed with a bird perched on her shoulder.
One-third of the backdrop displays a semi wood-panelled interior wall.
Her Courageous Resistance Activities
The couple were living in the French capital when war broke out in the late 1930s.
After the Nazi occupation of the French capital, Suzanne joined the underground and was a participant in the intelligence network spy ring.
She employed her wealth to save over 160 Jewish youngsters from being deported, hiding several of them in her residence before they could be moved to secure locations.
Final Outcome and Historical Impact
In October 1943, the Nazis arrested Spaak along with 600 members of the Red Orchestra.
On 12 August 1944, just before the freeing of Paris, Nazi agents killed her in her prison cell. She had been 38 and has since recognized by the state of Israel as one of the Righteous Among the Nations for her efforts to save Jewish people.
Magritte passed away of pancreatic cancer on 15 August 1967 and rests in Brussels.
Display with Sale Schedule
This artwork, previously shown in the Magritte Museum in Brussels, has been rarely seen outside Belgium in more than 90 years.
The piece will be shown in the French capital between 17 and 23 October prior to the auction on 24 October.