Lot Essay
In the spring of 1952, Leonora Carrington traveled to Europe with her two sons Gabriel and Pablo, aged five and four, respectively. During the trip, they visited their family in England and attended Carrington's exhibition at the Galerie Pierre. After the exhibition and before parting for England, Pierre Loeb lent Carrington his country house in Darvaux. Carrington and the boys spent the summer there and were once visited by Mexican Surrealist Gunther Gerzs.
During this stay, Carrington painted the canvas she afterward titled Darvaux. The work is atypically autobiographical. The idyllic scene takes place in the courtyard of Loeb's house. The personage in red in the forefront is Carrington, and the two costumed children are her sons. As it is often seen in symbolist works, the present blends with the references that give the emotional tone to the work. They suggest what may be going on in the painting or in the mind of the personages; this could be a recollection, a wish, a fantasy, or a future event. In a barely visible scene in the background of Darvaux, taking place in the distance somewhere between the fountain in the middle of the garden and the house, a man is walking toward a woman and two children are running toward him. It is the wished reunion with Chiki, Carrington's husband and father of her children. The mood of the painting is mysterious, and this is probably the reason why, when it was first exhibited in Paris, it was titled "Enchanted Garden." When Carrington finished it, she gave it as a gift to Pierre Loeb in memory of her stay in his home. Twelve years later, Loeb lent the painting anonymously to a most controversial exhibition, which commemorated fifty years of Surrealism. The show was curated by Surrealist scholar Patrick Waldberg and categorically denied by the Pope of Surrealism, Andr Breton. Breton's reaction only served to fuel the great success of the exhibition.
Dr. Salomn Grimberg
Dallas, April 6, 1998
During this stay, Carrington painted the canvas she afterward titled Darvaux. The work is atypically autobiographical. The idyllic scene takes place in the courtyard of Loeb's house. The personage in red in the forefront is Carrington, and the two costumed children are her sons. As it is often seen in symbolist works, the present blends with the references that give the emotional tone to the work. They suggest what may be going on in the painting or in the mind of the personages; this could be a recollection, a wish, a fantasy, or a future event. In a barely visible scene in the background of Darvaux, taking place in the distance somewhere between the fountain in the middle of the garden and the house, a man is walking toward a woman and two children are running toward him. It is the wished reunion with Chiki, Carrington's husband and father of her children. The mood of the painting is mysterious, and this is probably the reason why, when it was first exhibited in Paris, it was titled "Enchanted Garden." When Carrington finished it, she gave it as a gift to Pierre Loeb in memory of her stay in his home. Twelve years later, Loeb lent the painting anonymously to a most controversial exhibition, which commemorated fifty years of Surrealism. The show was curated by Surrealist scholar Patrick Waldberg and categorically denied by the Pope of Surrealism, Andr Breton. Breton's reaction only served to fuel the great success of the exhibition.
Dr. Salomn Grimberg
Dallas, April 6, 1998