Le flamant rose et le voilier

Inscriptions: Signed (lower right)

Provenance: Sotheby’s, London, 25 June 2002, lot 136

Literature: Joann Moser, Daniel Robbins, Jean Metzinger in Retrospect, The University of Iowa Museum of Art, Iowa City, Iowa, August 31 – October 13, 1985, no. 19 (text), no. 18. reproduced p. 41 (dated circa 1907)

Notes: Le Flamant rose et le voilier is a striking example of Metzinger’s innovative Divisionist period, with its bold colors and dynamic brushwork. This work—along with Les Flamands (AM-06-008), Les Ibis (AM-07-001), and Paysage coloré aux oiseaux aquatiques (AM-07-002)—is considerably Fauve and bears many characteristics of the avant-garde tendency that began dominating the Parisian Salons as early as 1904 and 1905. As other works of the same period by Metzinger, these works differ remarkably from those of his contemporaries. There are few, if any, parallels to be found in the works executed by artists of Metzinger’s immediate circle, or peripheral entourage. The combination of painterly techniques, color and exoticism in its subject matter, sets this painting apart, resulting in a broader scope typically employed to define the Fauve movement.