Sale 1147, Lot 32 Alberto Giacometti (1901-1966) Femme debout, 1961 Bronze with brown patina Estimate: $1,000,000 - 1,500,000 Richard Cohen was a visionary collector. Drawn to the colour-drenched paintings of the Fauves and the German Expressionists, he was passionate about works on the cutting edge of developments in modern art. Often guided by the advice of a close friend and colleague, the famed film director Billy Wilder, Mr. Cohen assembled a collection that may now be considered a comprehensive overview of the entire modernist movement in Europe. From an 1876 urban scene by the Impressionist Gustave Caillebotte, through the radical develoments in early 20th century paintings, to signal works of the Post-War era, Mr. Cohen consistently sought out works in which the artist revealed penetrating psychological insight into the subject matter. The first version for Le Pont de l'Europe (Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth), the Cohen Caillebotte is a streetscape that pays homage to middle-class social movement and growth of industry. Replacing two stone tunnels which had been the only means of access to the Gare Saint-Lazare, Le Pont de l'Europe was considered one of the great engineering marvels of Baron Haussmann's massive construction programme for Napoleon III. Exploring the mixing of social classes, Caillebotte's depiction of two top-hatted men provide a certain contrast to the glimpse of a man dressed in a work shirt and cap leaning over the railing and gazing into the distance. The sudden emergence of the Fauve movement in 1905, signalled the end of the Post-Impressionist movement and heralded the advent of 20th century modernism. Emile-Othon Friesz, accompanied by Georges Braque, made his second trip to Antwerp in the summer of 1906 where he painted en plein air the Cohen Le Port d'Anvers. With its bold juxtapositions of unmodulated pigment, Le Port d'Anvers, and the seven preparatory oils it required, formed a key chapter both in the development of the painter's own aesthetic and in the evolution of modern art in the early years of the century. The influence of Fauve colour may be seen in Alexej von Jawlensky's expressionist Jünges Mädchen mit den grünen Augen, painted circa 1910. Free of any conservative restraints, this bold and immediate portrait not only emphasises his great admiration for Matisse's Fauve style, but also illustrates the painter's Russian roots and his interest in folk painting. Also in the sale is Pablo Picasso's Le repos of 1932, which records a quiet and intimate moment that unites Surrealist reverie with the formal elegance of the artist's neoclassical style. With long and languid brushstrokes, Picasso allows a glimpse into the dream-like atmosphere of Boisgeloup, the château where he installed his twenty-two year old lover Marie-Thérèse Walter. The palette of Le repos and other works from this period are highly charged with private meaning. Picasso associated lavender, yellow and green with Marie-Thérèse, and reserved these colours for her depiction. From the post-war period onward, the Cohen Collection is richly represented by works from Alberto Giacometti, Nicolas de Staël and Alexander Calder. Having emerged as an innovative and intensely subjective sculptor during the Surrealist movement of the 1920s, it was the gaunt and elongated figures conceived after the Second World War that sealed Giacometti's reputation as the greatest sculptor of the post war era. The Cohen Femme debout of 1961 represents the artist's continued exploration of the theme of the standing woman - an image that ultimately dominated his career. Nicolas de Staël is one of the most admired painters in the generation of French artist's that emerged after the war. The Cohen Sicile (Paysage en Sicile) of 1954 was based on memories of a trip to Sicily the previous year. The intense colour harmonies evoke the artist's response to the radiant light and rugged scenery of the Mediterranean world. On November 6 and 7, Christie's New York will offer these and other fine works from the Cohen Collection. An Important painting by the Swiss Nabis artist Félix Vallotton, Le baiser, 1898, will be offered at Christie's Zurich on 28 November. Other works from the Cohen Collection will be included in Christie's London sale of Impressionist and Modern Art on 3 February 2003. ANIKA GUNTRUM IS A SPECIALIST IN THE IMPRESSIONIST AND MODERN ART DEPARTMENT IN CHRISTIE'S PARIS Back to top