PARIS.- Le Trait de Lumière painted in 1959 by Jane Graverol achieved €579,975 – a new auction world record for the artist – at
Bonhams' La Révolution Surréaliste / Surrealist Sale today (Wednesday 29 March) in Paris. The work had a pre-sale estimate of €35,000 - €55,000 and was one of the highlights of the sale. A second painting by Jane Graverol entitled Hommage à Papin has been sold for €147,795 for an estimate of €35,000 to €55,000.
The 199-lot sale made a total of €2,731,865 with 66% sold by lot and 93% sold by value.
Emilie Millon, Bonhams’ Head of Impressionist & Modern Art in Paris, commented: "We're absolutely delighted with the results of today's sale, and especially the fantastic results for works by women artists – a particularly fitting achievement on the opening of the exhibition at the Musée de Montmartre in Paris. Le Trait de Lumière by Jane Graverol was a rarely offered masterpiece, and this clearly shows that her work is finally receiving the recognition it deserves."
Portrait d'André Breton by Max Ernst (1891-1976) and his then-wife Marie-Berthe Aurenche (1906-1960), has been sold for €819,375 and was the top lot of the sale. Recent attributions neglected Aurenche’s key contributions to the creation of the work, but she is now rightfully recognized as the co-author of this painting with Max Ernst.
A new auction world record for a work on paper by Leonor Fini (1907-1996), entitled Portrait féminin n°44 achieved €113,775. “Paintings, like dreams, have a life of their own and I have always painted very much the way I dream,” she once said.
A group of works by Man Ray (1890-1976) from the collection of his celebrated model, Jacqueline Barsotti-Goddard, fresh to the market and previously unseen in public, made a total of €101,595. Among them, La bonne route, an oil on canvas laid on Masonite painted in 1953, sold for €44,475.
Other highlights of the sale included:
• Leonor Fini (1907-1996), Portrait féminin n°44. Sold for €113,775.
• Valentine Hugo (1887-1968), L’esprit du vin ou l’alcoolisme. Sold for €88,575
• Rachel Baes (1912-1985), Œdipe et le sphynx. Sold for €16,575.
• Victor Brauner (1903-1966), Homme des Etoiles. Sold for €69,675.
• Dado (1933-2010), Untitled. Sold for €53,295.
