La Revue
WHEN THREE INDOCHINESE PAINTERS EXHIBIT IN ALGERIATiếng Việt
French
Between the wars, André Romanet held a gallery with his wife at 18 rue Matignon in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. He exhibited his contemporaries from the modern avant-garde movement such as Vlaminck, Derain, Chagall, Picabia and Cavailles. In the early 1940s, the picture rails of his gallery were adorned with a very particular new style; Indeed, the works of these painters began to be displayed alongside the unknowns Lê Phổ, Mai Trung Thứ and Vũ Cao Đàm under the Romanet light.
The latter, recently arrived in France, were trained at the Indochina School of Fine Arts. When the Lorenceau Gallery exhibited Lê Phổ in 1941 in Vichy, André Romanet fell under the spell of the work of this artist whom he met at the time. He was touched by the themes that these Vietnamese artists were fond of and which transcribed the life of their country of origin and he appreciated the delicate techniques used, silk and ink. The Romanets decided to support the three young artists, to advise them and to exhibit their work.
André Romanet, who also owned the Pasteur Art Gallery, located at 55 rue d'Isly in Algiers and another gallery in Oran, decided to present the work of the trio to collectors in the French departments of Algeria. He made arrangements with the Governorate General to facilitate the organization of this exhibition. Thus, in 1941, Mai Trung Thứ, Vũ Cao Đàm and Lê Phổ were invited by the governor of Algeria, Yves Chataigneau. The exhibition, which runs until 1942, features seven works by Vũ Cao Đàm, 42 works by Mai Trung Thứ and 46 by Lê Phổ.
Catalog of the exhibition
Romanet Gallery, Gallery of art Pasteur
Algiers about 1941-42
N°51
The painting titles evoke the popular themes: portraits of young women, maternities, still life, children and intergenerational scenes.
Jeune fille à l’éventail, by Lê Phổ, was presented under number 66 (with the title L'Eventail). This painting perfectly illustrates the delicacy of gesture and line that caused a sensation even in the Algerian press of the time. "Just like their marvelous ancestors, they paint on silk, and it seems that no material could be better suited to their light art, to the line, to the thread rather, which circles, supple, their calm figures" wrote Gaston Poulain on the occasion of this exhibition.
Article published on the occasion of the exhibition of Algiers towards 1941-1942
Lê Phổ (1907-2001)
Jeune fille à l'éventail, circa 1950-1960
Ink and color on silk, signed and stamped upper left
51 x 40.5 cm à vue - 20 x 15 3/4 in
Provenance:
Romanet Gallery, Pasteur Art Gallery, Algiers around 1941-42, n°66
Aguttes sale June 6, 2016
Following the success of this exhibition, the Romanet Gallery will support and exhibit Lê Phổ for about twenty years. Other exhibitions will be organized in Algeria between 1942 and 1944, then again in Paris and New York in the 1960s. This relationship between the gallery owner and the artist influenced Lê Phổ's painting to the point that today we speak of the "Romanet period" to describe the work produced after the first exhibition in Algiers. As the years went by, Lê Phổ would introduce oil, and gradually choose to work on canvas. Romanet will encourage him in this path. In addition, his compositions will become more charged, and he will apply his colors in large, relatively blurred flat tints.
The Asian Painters department, directed by Charlotte Aguttes-Reynier, an expert, has been working for the past ten years to bring to light the little-known and forgotten Asian artists who came to France at the beginning of the 20th century. Aguttes has thus exhibited and then auctioned a great many paintings by Lê Phổ, Mai Trung Thứ or even Vũ Cao Đàm. Among these works, we have listed those from these exhibitions in Algiers which are illustrated below.
Exhibition leaflet published by the Galerie d'Art Pasteur in Algiers in 1941
Illustrated triptych, and list of the 92 works exhibited by Mai Thứ and Lê Pho
With preface by André Romanet
1
1- Lê Phổ n°51 - Aguttes sale of 16 Dec. 2016
2
2- Lê Phổ n°59 - Aguttes sale of 24 Oct. 2016
3
3- Lê Phổ n°71 - Aguttes Sale Dec 17, 2018
4
4- Lê Phổ n°52 - Aguttes sale June 12, 2017
5
5- Vũ Cao Đàm n°90 - Aguttes sale 6 Oct. 2020
6
6- Mai Trung Thứ – Aguttes sale 6 Oct. 2020
7
7- Mai Trung Thứ n°28 – Aguttes sale 6 Oct. 2020
8
8- Mai Trung Thứ n°25 – Aguttes sale 6 Oct. 2020
9
9- Mai Trung Thứ – Aguttes sale 30 Nov. 2020
10
10- Mai Trung Thứ n°27 –Aguttes sale 6 Oct. 2020
11
11- Mai Trung Thu – Aguttes sale 6 Oct. 2020
12
12- Lê Phổ – Aguttes sale 6 Oct. 2020
13
13-Lê Phổ – Aguttes sale 22 Oct. 2018
14
14- Lê Phổ – Aguttes sale 2 Jun. 2015
15
15- Mai Trung Thu – Aguttes sale 3 Mar. 2022
16
16- Lê Phổ – Aguttes sale 25 Jun. 2018
Peintres & Arts du Vietnam [35]
Vente aux enchères
Aguttes • 164 bis, avenue Charles-de-Gaulle • Neuilly-sur-Seine
Lundi 3 octobre 2022
Charlotte Aguttes-Reynier
Expert Peintres d’Asie
+33 1 41 92 06 49 - reynier@aguttes.com