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LOT 006

CC QMG RCA
1904 - 1990
Canadian

Baigneur
oil on canvas, circa 1965
signed and on verso titled
26 3/4 x 16 5/8 in, 67.9 x 42.2 cm

Estimate: $40,000 - $60,000 CAD

Sold for: $73,250

Preview at: Heffel Toronto – 13 Hazelton Ave

PROVENANCE
Acquired directly from the Artist by the spouse of Argentina's former ambassador to Canada, 1960s
By descent to the present Private Collection, Paris

LITERATURE
Guy Robert, Lemieux, 1975, page 185


“I’ve always loved old yellowed photographs, family albums, and when I’m in my studio, confronted by the empty canvas, something appears in my mind’s eye from very far away. People appear, hazily, people from my own inner world. It’s through memory that I make them my own and eliminate the details at the same time...I imagine that must sound a little Proustian.”

—Jean Paul Lemieux

In the early 1960s, Jean Paul Lemieux produced paintings that depicted close-ups of individuals of all ages, and Baigneur is an outstanding work from this time. A boy stands facing us - he smiles, enjoying a day in the sun and by the water. He is serene, experiencing a peaceful time when simple pleasures filled one’s awareness. Lemieux reduces the background to a strip of water, a strip of land, and a big featureless sky that is mottled and glowing with light, against which the figure of the boy resonates. The boy’s smile is also enigmatic, and Lemieux, always aware of the dimension of time, implies that this is only a moment captured, which will soon change, a point on the voyage of a human life.

This work will be included in Michèle Grandbois's forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the artist's work.


Estimate: $40,000 - $60,000 CAD

All prices are in Canadian Dollars


Although great care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information posted, errors and omissions may occur. All bids are subject to our Terms and Conditions of Business. Bidders must ensure they have satisfied themselves with the condition of the Lot prior to bidding. Condition reports are available upon request.