Result
CONTEMPORARY ART, THE SALE TOTALS OVER 2.1 MILLION EUROS AND SETS A NEW WORLD RECORD

 

On April 6, 2023, Aguttes set a new world record for Fabienne Verdier, achieving €362,970 for "Cercle - Ascèse." The auction featured an impressive collection of works on paper, highlighting Pierre Soulages' talent, and witnessed significant bidding activity indicating a growing interest in the Asian art scene. The "Contemporary Art" auction totaled €2,134,431.



Contemporary Art - Post-War to Present
Top 5 Sales:

1 - lot 72 – Fabienne Verdier, Cercle – Ascèse, 2007 - 362 970 €
2 - lot 3 – Chu Teh-Chun, Le 20 janvier 1979 - 195 000 €
3 - lot 4 – Chu Teh-Chun, N°300, 1967 - 128 725 €
4 - lot 36 – Jean-Michel Atlan, Sans titre, 1957 - 124 800 €
5 - lot 29 – Georges Mathieu, Fzeya, 1965 - 117 000 €


View the full auction results.

New World Record for Fabienne Verdier
This marks the eighth artwork by Fabienne Verdier sold by Aguttes in three years, and I am proud to follow the work of this artist. Cercle Ascèse fetched €362,970, doubling the previous world record on April 6. During the dispersal of the Guy Boyer Collection, another small format work by Fabienne Verdier, 'Rêverie sur les hautes cimes, l'Atelier, été,' tripled its low estimate, reaching €32,500. These results confirm a turning point in the artist's secondary market value." - Ophélie Guillerot, Director of the Contemporary Art Department
In "Cercle – Ascèse" (Lot 72), the open and unfinished circle symbolizes endless possibilities, representing a mind engaged with surrounding energies, in harmony with nature and others. The circular movement the artist employs to create this circle reflects profound and personal contemplation. The circle, symbolizing unity and infinity, exemplifies natural perfection and the absolute.
More than 10 phones and a bidder in the room competed for this work by Fabienne Verdier, ultimately selling for €362,970. On April 6, 2023, Aguttes secured a new world record for this inheritor of the last great Chinese calligraphers. Fabienne Verdier, trained in Chongqing in the 1980s after studying at the Beaux-Arts in Toulouse, creates a unique universe bridging modernity and tradition, reflecting a sense of the absolute and universality.



Lot 72 - Fabienne VERDIER (born in 1962),
"Cercle - Ascèse," 2007
Ink, pigments, and varnish on canvas stretched on panel, signed and titled on the back, 183 x 135 cm
A certificate of authenticity signed by the artist will be provided to the buyer.
Provenance:
Art Plural Gallery, Singapore
Private collection, Switzerland
Sold for €362,970


 

Dynamism of the Asian Scene Confirmed
This contemporary art auction also highlighted Asian artists, including Chu Teh-Chun and Kim Tschang-Yeul. Notable sales included "January 20, 1979" (Lot 3) and "No. 300, 1967" (Lot 4) by Chu Teh Chun, fetching €195,000 and €128,725, respectively.
Chu Teh-Chun (1920-2014) remains a master of lyrical abstraction. The work from 1979 (Lot 3) depicts wintry mountain landscapes, showcasing the artist's fascination with the French mountains since the mid-1960s.



Lot 3 - CHU TEH-CHUN (1920 - 2014)
Oil on canvas, signed bottom right, countersigned, dedicated, and dated on the back
46 x 61 cm
A certificate of authenticity from the Chu Teh-Chun Foundation will be provided to the buyer.
Provenance: Gifted by the artist and then passed down
Sold for €195,000



This painting portrays a winter mountain landscape with cliffs and relief, predominantly in white, with blue hues evoking icy snow reflections. Chu Teh-Chun, born in 1920 in Jiangsu province, combines his early training in Chinese calligraphy and classical poetry with a deep admiration for Cézanne, Degas, and Matisse.



Lot 4 - CHU TEH-CHUN (1920 - 2014)
* N°300, 1967

Gouache on paper, signed and dated bottom right, countersigned, dated, and titled on the back 48 x 60 cm.
A certificate of authenticity signed by Madame Ching-Chao Chu, dated April 17, 2012, will be provided to the buyer.
Provenance:
Private collection, United States
Sold for €128,725



Another sought-after artist is Kim Tschang-Yeul, a significant painter contributing to the renewal of the contemporary Korean art scene. "Gouttes d'eau" (Lot 2), dated 1973, fetched €80,600 in its auction debut. This work showcases Kim Tschang-Yeul's famous realistic water droplets, a theme explored by the artist since the early 1970s.



Lot 2 - Kim TSCHANG-YEUL (1929-2021)
Gouttes d'eau, 1973

Oil on canvas, signed and dated bottom right, signed, titled, dated, and with the gallery Thot stamp on the back on the chassis.
50 x 50 cm
Provenance:
Galerie Thot, Avignon, 1973
Private collection, France
Exhibition: "KIM Tschang-Yeul," Galerie Thot, Avignon, 1973
Sold for €80,600



Pierre Soulages Celebrated Through Graphic Works
"After the memorable sale last November of a painting by Pierre Soulages for €1.22 million, Aguttes continues its commitment to the artist through this collection of graphic works by the master of 'Outrenoir.'" - Ophélie Guillerot, Director of the Contemporary Art Department

The graphic works of Pierre Soulages (1919 - 2022) earned €183,740 through a selection of 12 lots. Known for his exploration of black and light, Soulages, a French painter and engraver, received recognition with over 110 museums globally displaying his work. The "Contemporary Art" catalog presented nine of his etchings from three different collections and three ink works on envelopes, highlighting the significance of this aspect in Soulages's oeuvre.


Lot 50 - PIERRE SOULAGES (1919 - 2022)
Eau-forte XIX, 1970
Eau-forte sur papier, 
numbered 15/100 bottom left and signed bottom right, 76.5 x 56.5 cm.
Provenance: Private collection in the Paris region Bibliography: Pietrzyk Estelle, Ragon Michel, Dupuis Gilbert; Soulages le temps du papier;
Catalogue of the exhibition at the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Strasbourg (MAMCS), October 31, 2009 - January 3, 2010; Éditions Cercle d'Art, Paris, 224 pages.
Listed and reproduced work

Sold for €32,500


"I did engraving because, with engraving, something appeared; something that could not appear in painting.". Pierre Soulages
Known for his large "Outrenoir" canvases, Soulages also made remarkable contributions to the art of etching, revealing a more intimate and personal aspect of his career. Encouraged by his friend Hans Hartung, he discovered etching in the 1950s at the Lacourière workshop in Paris.



ask for an appraisal

Ophélie Guillerot
Expert Art contemporain
+33 1 47 45 93 02 - guillerot@aguttes.com

Aguttes Neuilly • 164 bis, avenue Charles-de-Gaulle - Neuilly-sur-Seine
 

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