Property from the Collection of Lee V. Eastman When Lee Eastman entered Josef and Anni Albers's lives, the former Bauhausler were living at a remove from the art world, in a modest house in a quiet residential neighborhood not far from New Haven, Connecticut. The Alberses were by then the last living faculty members of the Bauhaus faculty, having been among those who led the pioneering art school to transform everyday design, as well as abstract art, forever. Although they-Josef especially-were often sought after by photographers and writers and museum directors, they preferred an isolated way of life that allowed them maximum time to keep making art. Yet they needed protection, financial advice, and someone who could be an honest buffer between them and all the people who wanted something from them. This was when Lee Eastman became their guardian angel. Hans Namuth, who had recently filmed an excellent documentary about Josef Albers, made the introduction. Namuth chose well; he wisely recognized why Lee and Josef, and their wives, would have such rapport. If the Alberses were living away from the world, while the Eastmans were in the swim of it in both Manhattan and East Hampton, they all had a lot in common. Lee and Josef both spoke bluntly and prized candor and intelligence. The two men shared a quality of intense animation, and a passion for the beauty of art and the infinite pleasures of everyday living. And each respected the other's consummate professionalism. Lee was, in the eyes of both Josef and Anni Albers, a savior. He dealt with legal situations, put their finances in order, and fired and hired the art dealers who could best advance Josef's cause. He worked with the renowned Henry Geldzahler, also a friend and client, in organizing Josef's retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum-the first such show ever given to a living artist in the Met's history. Lee dealt delicately with the sort of awkward situations that can occur in an artist's life-publications that misrepresented Josef's position in art history; unauthorized reproductions; swindlers trying to take advantage of an old man more interested in making art than in protecting himself. Time and again, their devoted attorney was a hero to two people who would otherwise have felt stranded. Moreover, he and Monique became true friends to Josef and Anni, both of whom reveled in the Eastmans' warmth and charm and good humor. Lee Eastman and Josef Albers lived very differently from one another, but each had gone a substantial difference from his childhood while reveling in aspects of his familial heritage. Each man was a solo son with two sisters, and each held his father in highest respect-for reasons of the intellectual integrity and emphasis on hard work that had been central to his upbringing. These were two highly successful individuals who remained proud of what was strong and memorable in their modest origins. Lee was, from Josef and Anni's point of view, the perfect person to represent them in the world. He had the knowledge of the law, and of tax and estate issues, that they knew they needed. He was connected with other artists and with important figures in the world of museums and galleries. More significantly, he was a man of real intellect -someone who prized great works of literature and had ultimate respect for true creators, for the people to whom the making of art was the central issue of life. He lived surrounded by books and paintings, and he saw both as the ultimate expressions of the value of life. He also was courtly and personable, and extremely kind-demonstrating the respect for the people around him (and, concomitantly, impatience with people who lacked such respect) that was essential to Josef and Anni. Lee was also a connoisseur, quite distinct in Josef's eyes from many other collectors of his work. The Homages to the Square that Lee acquired, in the selection of which Josef aided him, were unquestionably among the finest from that renowned series in which Josef allowed color to perform its magic. The Homages in the Eastman collection are all exceptionally rich and subtle at the same time. Lee had conceived of the Josef Albers Foundation, which became a marvelous vehicle for disseminating Josef's work and his approach to art. He was determined to see the Foundation achieve its mission of "the revelation and evocation of vision through art," helping to open the eyes of people of every age, nationality, and economic situation. He also wanted to see the work and values of both Josef and Anni Albers flourish. For Lee Eastman had total respect for these two marvelous refugee artists, and deemed their legacy of vital importance. True artists, the Alberses always felt the kindness and knowledge of the man who brought a sense of sanctuary to the last years of their lives, and the world has profited by the way he enabled their legacy to live on for the benefit of others. -- Nicholas Fox Weber

Josef Albers (1888-1976)

Homage to the Square: Earth Glow

Details

Josef Albers (1888-1976)
Homage to the Square: Earth Glow
signed with monogram and dated 'A 63' (lower right); signed again, titled and dated again 'Study for Homage to the Square: "EARTH GLOW" Albers 1963' (on the reverse)
oil on masonite
24 x 24 in. (61 x 61 cm.)
Painted in 1963.

Provenance

Acquired from the artist

Lot Essay

This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné being prepared by the Anni and Josef Albers Foundation.

"An element added to an element must produce besides its sum at least one interesting relationship. The more different relationships that arise and the more intensive they are, the more the elements enhance one another, the more valuable the result"

Homage to the Square: Earth Glow

Lot Essay

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