Gouache (modern), 1960

Catalog : cat. Alexis Poliakoff CRSP Vol. III n°60-88 page 188

46.00 cm. x 61.00 cm. | 18.11 in. x 24.02 in. (image)

64.00 cm. x 79.00 cm. | 25.2 in. x 31.1 in. (frame)

This admirable gouache by Serge Poliakoff was painted during his mature years. During this period, he experimented more with bright colors, whereas he had been using brown and saturated tones until then.

In this work, orange is the dominant color. Declined in four major variations, this beautiful orange cameo gives the painting a warm harmony. It seems falsely constituted in flatness, but on closer inspection, the colors are side by side without being juxtaposed. They come together and overlap, as if each color were an integral part of the others. We see it in particular thanks to the treatment of the textures brought by the gouache. In places, the finish is polished, in others, it gives the impression of rubbed paint. We perceive at the same time a chromatic uniqueness merging with a disparity of finishes, which creates a certain transparency of the material.

It is a similar game that Serge Poliakoff plays with his composition. The geometric structure gives an impression of order even as the artist opts for irregularity of form and asymmetry. Once again, the opacity of the material contrasts with the rigidity of the broken and arched lines. Between continuity and rupture, he interprets the pictorial grid, which made the success of Otto Freundlich whom he met in the 1930s, by totally abandoning the motif.
Only the color, generous and bright, as it is carried by the formal rigor, remains infallible.

Excellent condition
Handsigned by the artist in pencil
Certificate of authenticity

Ref : LCD5559