Josep Maria Sert Paintings & Artwork for Sale | Josep Maria Sert Art Value Price Guide

Jul. 11, 2024
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de libertad" and "Pueblo de comerciantes", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel.
Est: €7,000 - €9,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de libertad" and "Pueblo de comerciantes", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel. The definitive panels published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, pp. 215 and 218. Measurements: 74.5 x 53.5 cm. This canvas presents two scenes. On the one hand, "People of Freedom", which shows the Guernica Tree, symbol of the freedoms of Vasconia, which rises with its dry branches in front of the peristyle of the Casa de las Juntas. Alberto del Castillo states that "the figure of Liberty flies through the air, centring a sparkling aureole which the rays of glory furrow". At the foot of the old oak tree, a large open book symbolises the Charter of Bizkaia; on the other hand, "Pueblo de comerciantes" represents the scene dedicated to the Real Compañía Guipuzkoana de Caracas, an entity that gave the province an unusual economic boom throughout the 17th century. This work exalts the Basques as a people of merchants. Both compositions were painted for the decoration of the great hall of the Museum of the former convent of San Telmo in San Sebastián, one of the most colourful decorations of the painter's life. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc. In 1908 he decorated the Sala dels Pasos Perdus at the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly). He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those at the Waldorf Astoria.
Setdart Auction House
Jul. 11, 2024
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. It presents xylophages in the frame.
Est: €4,000 - €5,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. Presents xylophages in the frame. Size: 42 x 53 cm; 44 x 55 cm (frame). The work presented here is an oil on panel sketch that Sert made in 1913 as part of the decoration project for the London residence of Sir Saxton Noble, known as Kent House. The paintings were intended for the ornamentation of two adjoining rooms separated by an Ionic-style colonnade, one used as a music room and the other as a ballroom. According to the book "José María Sert: His Life and Work", by Alberto del Castillo, this work would have decorated the fireplace room (which should correspond to the music room). He states that "the decoration of the adjoining room, the fireplace room, is like a journey to a dreamland". He continues: "The panel on the right - which would correspond to the final work of the work under tender - represents a fantastic port of the Orient, evoking Parnassian poetry. A foreground with coloured brick paving, a canal full of boats in the background, this is a Venetian theme in the style of Bellini or Carpaccio, which Tiepolo still followed in his Embarkation of Cleopatra". Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, he was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by orientalism and Goya's expressionism, with a chromaticism almost exclusively based on gold and sepia tones.
Setdart Auction House
Jun. 11, 2024
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Alegoría".1935-1845. Sketch of decoration for a theatre. Black and coloured pencil on paper, adhered to canvas.
Est: €3,000 - €3,500
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Alegoría".1935-1845. Sketch of decoration for a theatre. Black and coloured pencil on paper, adhered to canvas. Bibliography: Alberto Del Castillo, "José Mª Sert, his life and work". Barcelona, 1947. p. 253, fig. 93. There are some flaws in the painting. Measurements: 64 x 67 cm; 66 x 69 cm (frame). This sketch for theatre decoration reveals Sert's scenographic skills, as well as his fertile inventiveness in developing rich allegories containing interwoven layers of meaning. In the 1930s, the period to which this sketch of a landscape with a pergola and fountain, animated by various figures, belongs, Sert had already made a name for himself as a mural painter after receiving important public and private commissions, including those for Vic Cathedral and the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly).
Setdart Auction House
Jun. 11, 2024
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "The Great Triumph of Bacchus", sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel.
Est: €5,000 - €6,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "The Great Triumph of Bacchus", sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. The final canvas is published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, plate 5. Size: 42 x 48 cm; 44 x 50 cm (frame). The work presented here is an oil on panel sketch that Sert made in 1913 as part of the project to decorate Sir Saxton Noble's London residence, known as Kent House. The paintings were intended for the ornamentation of two adjoining rooms separated by an Ionic-style colonnade, one used as a music room and the other as a ballroom. According to the book "José María Sert: His Life and Work" by Alberto del Castillo, this work, entitled "The Great Triumph of Bacchus", marks a change in the artist's oeuvre, as he stopped painting backgrounds inspired by Mediterranean culture in favour of decorations inspired by a more central European Germanic atmosphere. In fact, this canvas features a Greek background, inspired by the temple of the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, he was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by orientalism and Goya's expressionism, with a chromaticism almost exclusively based on gold and sepia tones.
Setdart Auction House
Jun. 11, 2024
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. The final canvas is published in "José María Sert.
Est: €5,000 - €6,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. The final canvas is published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, plate 7. It has xylophages. Measurements: 42,5 x 51 cm. In 1913, Sert painted the decoration of two adjoining rooms (the ballroom and the music room) in the residence of Sir Saxton Noble, in Kent House, London. In the first of these rooms, also known as the Hall of the Bocranes, the artist depicted two large scenes, one of them dedicated to the Triumph of Bacchus. The other composition, located on the opposite wall, has notable compositional and conceptual coincidences with the present work, such that it is fully justified to consider it as a preliminary study for this decorative ensemble. Thus, while the one in the Kent palace shows a violinist at the top of a flight of stairs, ours, of a more sketchy nature, features undiscernible figures. In both pieces, however, there are present bearers, exotic animals and centaurs, while singing putti ascend to the throne. Alberto del Castillo states that "the fundamental iconographic idea of this composition is the participation of the elephants in the triumph, an oriental motif that entered Europe through Venice, like so many other orientalisms". Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
May. 23, 2024
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "The Ascension. Oil on panel.
Est: €2,400 - €2,800
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "The Ascension. Oil on panel. Measurements: 60 x 48 cm; 73 x 64 cm (frame). Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Artistic Circle of Sant Lluc. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly). He made new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, before a great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and protector Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was named a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those at the Waldorf Astoria.
Setdart Auction House
Mar. 12, 2024
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "St. Thomas Aquinas", c.1926. Oil on panel. Sketch for the first decoration of the cathedral of Vic, destroyed in July 1936.
Est: €4,000 - €5,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "St. Thomas Aquinas", c.1926. Oil on panel. Sketch for the first decoration of the cathedral of Vic, destroyed in July 1936. Measurements: 100 x 140 cm; 115 x 155 cm (frame). Although Josep Maria Sert would receive incessant important commissions, the work that was most present throughout his life was the decoration of the Cathedral of Vic. Sert received the commissions around 1900, but they were interrupted by the First World War, so he resumed them by suppressing color and rethinking the perspectives to obtain depth. The mural painting of the cathedral as a whole was completed in 1929, but only seven years later it was destroyed. Shocked, Sert accepted the restoration of the cathedral, based on a set of bas-reliefs that would not be completed until the year of his death. José María Sert was one of the most quoted and controversial painters of his time and one of the best Spanish muralists. Heir to the Catalan Renaixença and modernist training, he developed a pictorial style outside the stylistic currents of his time. These characteristics make him a renovator of mural painting and a prolific artist who painted more than seven thousand square meters of cathedrals, palaces, great halls, private residences and city halls in various cities. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly). He made new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and protector Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was named a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those at the Waldorf Astoria.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 24, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT - Study of figures
Est: -
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT Barcelona 1874-1945 Study of figures. 1908-10 Charcoal and clarion drawing Measurements 103 x 65 cm BIBLIOGRAPHY "It is effectively a drawing by Sert that I would date around 1908-10, due to its proximity to others that We know about those dates and from the work he did in those years. In the group he made for Alella, The Triumph of Love, "Love and Youth" are represented by a man and a woman who take a very similar attitude but in reverse (the woman on the left), we can see the image in Del Castillo's book, plate 2. The MNAC has a couple of drawings that resemble this technique and which are dated around that date. In the catalog of the Petit Palais exhibition (2012) one of them appears published (p.80), they also recall those in the collection of the Musée d'Orsay that were also exhibited in Paris (p. 83)". Mrs. PIlar Sáenz Lacave.
Subastas Segre
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pergola".1935-1845. Sketch of decoration for a theatre. Black and coloured pencil on paper, glued to canvas.
Est: €4,000 - €4,500
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pergola".1935-1845. Sketch of decoration for a theatre. Black and coloured pencil on paper, glued to canvas. A very similar work is published in: Alberto Del Castillo, "José Mª Sert, his life and work". Barcelona, 1947. p. 253, fig. 93. Sizes: 72 x 74 cm; 74 x 76 cm (frame). This sketch for theatre decoration reveals Sert's scenographic talents, as well as his fertile inventiveness in developing landscapes in which the myth developing landscapes in which myth and everyday life are interwoven, in which the natural and the supernatural are laminated. In the 1930s, the period to which this sketch of a landscape with a pergola and fountain, animated by various figures, belongs, Sert had already made a name for himself as a mural painter after receiving important public and private commissions, including those for Vic Cathedral and the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly).
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de Santos", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel (gilt and red).
Est: €7,000 - €9,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de Santos", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel (gilt and red). The definitive panels published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, pp. 215 and 218. Measurements: 50 x 70 cm; 74 x 93 cm (frame). In this study of mural painting destined for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum, Saint Ignatius of Loyola is depicted writing the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus at the dictation of Christ, who, with an unnailed hand, advises him from the cross. In 1930 the San Sebastián City Council commissioned José María Sert, on the recommendation of the painter Ignacio Zuloaga, to paint eleven canvases for the church of the convent of San Telmo, a Renaissance building that the municipal corporation had acquired twenty years earlier with the intention of converting it into a museum. Pueblo de Santos" was located above the arches of the main nave, next to "Pueblo de Sabios" and "Pueblo de Leyendas". Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de Sabios", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel (gilt and red).
Est: €7,000 - €9,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de Sabios", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel (gilt and red). The definitive panels published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, pp. 215 and 218. Measurements: 50 x 70 cm; 74 x 93 cm (frame). In this composition study destined for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum, the Knights of Azkoitia, constituted as the Bascongada Society of Friends of the Country, were represented receiving the visit of a wise foreign chemist. In 1930 the San Sebastián City Council commissioned José María Sert, on the recommendation of the painter Ignacio Zuloaga, to paint eleven canvases for the church of the convent of San Telmo, a Renaissance building that the municipal corporation had acquired twenty years earlier with the intention of converting it into a museum. Pueblo de Sabios" was located above the arches of the main nave, together with "Pueblo de Santos" and "Pueblo de Herreros" (Town of Saints and Town of Blacksmiths). The wise men referred to one of the first scientific institutions of the Enlightenment on the peninsula: the Royal Basque Society of the Marquis of Peñaflorida. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. It presents xylophages in the frame.
Est: €5,000 - €6,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. Presents xylophages in the frame. Size: 42 x 53 cm; 44 x 55 cm (frame). The work presented here is an oil on panel sketch that Sert made in 1913 as part of the decoration project for the London residence of Sir Saxton Noble, known as Kent House. The paintings were intended for the ornamentation of two adjoining rooms separated by an Ionic-style colonnade, one used as a music room and the other as a ballroom. According to the book "José María Sert: His Life and Work", by Alberto del Castillo, this work would have decorated the fireplace room (which should correspond to the music room). He states that "the decoration of the adjoining room, the fireplace room, is like a journey to a dreamland". He continues: "The panel on the right - which would correspond to the final work of the work under tender - represents a fantastic port of the Orient, evoking Parnassian poetry. A foreground with coloured brick paving, a canal full of boats in the background, this is a Venetian theme in the style of Bellini or Carpaccio, which Tiepolo still followed in his Embarkation of Cleopatra". Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, he was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by orientalism and Goya's expressionism, with a chromaticism almost exclusively based on gold and sepia tones.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Sketch for "The Four Evangelists, Saint Peter and Saint Paul", 1927. Oil on panel.
Est: €15,000 - €18,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Sketch for "The Four Evangelists, Saint Peter and Saint Paul", 1927. Oil on panel. Study for the back of the apse of Vic Cathedral, destroyed in July 1936. Attached to the back is the label of the exhibition: "San Pablo en el Arte", Ministry of General Education of Fine Arts. Casón del Buen Retiro, Madrid (1964). Measurements: 119 x 169 cm; 121 x 172 cm (frame). Although Josep Maria Sert was to receive numerous major commissions, the work that was most present throughout his life was the decoration of Vic Cathedral. Sert worked arduously on the task, producing several studies of the same subject, which is why there are so many sketches. In this monumental study for the apse, the four evangelists appear with the tetramorph (the eagle of Saint John, the ox of Saint Luke, the lion of Mark and the angel with Matthew). The sculptural bodies and the red curtain give the subject a great scenographic charge, in which St. Paul and St. Peter are also evoked. Set received the commissions around 1900, but they were interrupted by the First World War and he resumed them, eliminating colour and rethinking the perspectives in order to achieve depth. The mural painting of the cathedral as a whole was completed in 1929, but only seven years later it was destroyed. Shocked, Sert accepted the restoration of the cathedral on the basis of a set of bas-reliefs which he did not complete until the year of his death.José María Sert was one of the most sought-after and controversial painters of his time and one of the best Spanish muralists. Heir to the Catalan Renaixença and trained as a modernist, he developed a pictorial style outside the stylistic trends of his time. These characteristics make him a renovator of mural painting and a prolific artist who painted more than seven thousand square metres of cathedrals, palaces, great halls, private residences and town halls in various cities. María Sert was one of the most sought-after and controversial painters of his time and one of the best Spanish muralists. Heir to the Catalan Renaixença and trained as a modernist, he developed a pictorial style outside the stylistic trends of his time. These characteristics make him a renovator of mural painting and a prolific artist who painted more than seven thousand square metres of cathedrals, palaces, great halls, private residences and town halls in various cities, but without doubt the work that was most present throughout his life was the decoration of Vic Cathedral. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc. In 1908 he decorated the Sala dels Pasos Perdus at the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly). He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those at the Waldorf Astoria.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel.
Est: €6,000 - €8,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Untitled, sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. The final canvas is published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, plate 7. It has xylophages. Measurements: 42,5 x 51 cm. In 1913, Sert painted the decoration of two adjoining rooms (the ballroom and the music room) in the residence of Sir Saxton Noble, in Kent House, London. In the first of these rooms, also known as the Hall of the Bocranes, the artist depicted two large scenes, one of them dedicated to the Triumph of Bacchus. The other composition, located on the opposite wall, has notable compositional and conceptual coincidences with the present work, such that it is fully justified to consider it as a preliminary study for this decorative ensemble. Thus, while the one in the Kent palace shows a violinist at the top of a flight of stairs, ours, of a more sketchy nature, features undiscernible figures. In both pieces, however, there are present bearers, exotic animals and centaurs, while singing putti ascend to the throne. Alberto del Castillo states that "the fundamental iconographic idea of this composition is the participation of the elephants in the triumph, an oriental motif that entered Europe through Venice, like so many other orientalisms". Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "The Great Triumph of Bacchus", sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel.
Est: €6,000 - €8,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADIA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "The Great Triumph of Bacchus", sketch for the Salon of the Bucraneans at Kent House, London, 1913. Oil on panel. The final canvas is published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, plate 5. Size: 42 x 48 cm; 44 x 50 cm (frame). The work presented here is an oil on panel sketch that Sert made in 1913 as part of the project to decorate Sir Saxton Noble's London residence, known as Kent House. The paintings were intended for the ornamentation of two adjoining rooms separated by an Ionic-style colonnade, one used as a music room and the other as a ballroom. According to the book "José María Sert: His Life and Work" by Alberto del Castillo, this work, entitled "The Great Triumph of Bacchus", marks a change in the artist's oeuvre, as he stopped painting backgrounds inspired by Mediterranean culture in favour of decorations inspired by a more central European Germanic atmosphere. In fact, this canvas features a Greek background, inspired by the temple of the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, he was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by orientalism and Goya's expressionism, with a chromaticism almost exclusively based on gold and sepia tones.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Heroic Defence of the Almogavars in a Tower", for the Salón de Crónicas, Barcelona City Hall, 1928. Oil on panel.
Est: €8,000 - €10,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Heroic Defence of the Almogavars in a Tower", for the Salón de Crónicas, Barcelona City Hall, 1928. Oil on panel. The final panel is published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, p. 175. Measurements: 63 x 98 cm. Alberto del Castillo states in his catalogue raisonné that the Hall of the Chronicles, so called because of the theme of its paintings, which allude to events narrated in the old Catalan chronicles, is a rectangular piece, in which the three interior walls, the five panels corresponding to the façade of the street of the city and the central octagon that forms the central part of the ceiling were intended for painting, this being the definitive piece in our sketch. The decoration of the ceiling was conceived as a false perspective which, in imitation of Correggio's great discovery, was developed by the Baroque, and is understood as an epic of the Catalans in the East. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc. In 1908 he decorated the Sala dels Pasos Perdus at the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly). He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those at the Waldorf Astoria.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Alegoría".1935-1845. Sketch of decoration for a theatre. Black and coloured pencil on paper, adhered to canvas.
Est: €3,000 - €3,500
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Alegoría".1935-1845. Sketch of decoration for a theatre. Black and coloured pencil on paper, adhered to canvas. Bibliography: Alberto Del Castillo, "José Mª Sert, his life and work". Barcelona, 1947. p. 253, fig. 93. There are some flaws in the painting. Measurements: 64 x 67 cm; 66 x 69 cm (frame). This sketch for theatre decoration reveals Sert's scenographic skills, as well as his fertile inventiveness in developing rich allegories containing interwoven layers of meaning. In the 1930s, the period to which this sketch of a landscape with a pergola and fountain, animated by various figures, belongs, Sert had already made a name for himself as a mural painter after receiving important public and private commissions, including those for Vic Cathedral and the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly).
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de libertad" and "Pueblo de comerciantes", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel.
Est: €8,000 - €10,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblo de libertad" and "Pueblo de comerciantes", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel. The definitive panels published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, pp. 215 and 218. Measurements: 74.5 x 53.5 cm. This canvas presents two scenes. On the one hand, "People of Freedom", which shows the Guernica Tree, symbol of the freedoms of Vasconia, which rises with its dry branches in front of the peristyle of the Casa de las Juntas. Alberto del Castillo states that "the figure of Liberty flies through the air, centring a sparkling aureole which the rays of glory furrow". At the foot of the old oak tree, a large open book symbolises the Charter of Bizkaia; on the other hand, "Pueblo de comerciantes" represents the scene dedicated to the Real Compañía Guipuzkoana de Caracas, an entity that gave the province an unusual economic boom throughout the 17th century. This work exalts the Basques as a people of merchants. Both compositions were painted for the decoration of the great hall of the Museum of the former convent of San Telmo in San Sebastián, one of the most colourful decorations of the painter's life. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc. In 1908 he decorated the Sala dels Pasos Perdus at the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly). He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those at the Waldorf Astoria.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 03, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblos de Fueros", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel.
Est: €10,000 - €12,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Pueblos de Fueros", 1932-1934. Sketch for the auditorium of the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián. Oil on panel. The definitive panels published in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto del Castillo, pp. 215 and 218. Measurements: 72.5 x 74 cm; 90 x 91 cm (frame). In this sketch, the king of Castile, Alfonso VIII, is depicted swearing the oaths while the ecclesiastics ascend a stepped pyramid. This scene was to form part of an allegorical-historical ensemble about the Basque people as a "people of sailors, merchants, charters and fishermen", uniting the legendary with everyday life. The set was created to decorate the auditorium of the Museum of the former convent of San Telmo in San Sebastián, one of the most eye-catching decorations of the painter's life, and today considered one of the pictorial treasures of the capital of San Sebastián. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly). He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those at the Waldorf Astoria.
Setdart Auction House
Sep. 27, 2023
Elysium purifying the corrupt Waters, Italian school of the 17th century
Est: €7,000 - €8,000
Composition based on the biblical passage of the Old Testament, 2 Kings 19:22: "And the men of the city said to Elisha: Behold, the place where this city is located is good, as my lord sees; but the waters are and the land is barren." Then he said, "Bring me a new jar, and put salt in it." And they brought it to him. And going out to the springs of water, he poured the salt into it, and said, "Thus saith the Lord "I have healed these waters, and there shall be no more death or sickness in them. And the waters were healed to this day, according to the word that Elisha spoke." Oil on canvas. Measurements without frame: 133 x 97 cm. Measurements framed: 153 x 117 cm.
Templum Fine Art Auctions
Sep. 19, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT - Sketch for Kavanagh Screen
Est: -
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT Barcelona 1874-1945 Sketch for Screen Kavanagh. c. 1938 Oil and gold leaf on canvas Measurements 60 x 70 cm We thank Ms. Pilar Sáez Lacave for her help in cataloging this work. BIBLIOGRAPHY José María Sert. Alberto del Castillo and Cirici Pellicer Ed. Argos, Barcelona 1947 (original work) Corina Kavanagh finances the construction of the building that will bear her name, raised between 1934-1936, it became the tallest and most emblematic building in all of Latin America. Entrusted to the architects Gregorio Sánchez, Ernesto Lagos and Luis María de la Torre, it was completed in record time for the time. Once built, the owner entrusted the decoration of the music room to José María Sert. The piece that concerns us, is therefore a sketch for this set, the artist designs a screen of enormous dimensions, 28 panels that reach almost 15 meters wide by 2.50 meters high.
Subastas Segre
Sep. 14, 2023
JOSE MARIA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "American Progress (Sketch for the Rockefeller Center Mural)" Oil on laid paper. It has two slight tears on the margin.
Est: €7,000 - €8,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "American Progress (Sketch for the Rockefeller Center mural)". Oil on laid paper. It has two slight tears in the margin. Size: 32 x 64 cm; 63 x 90 cm (frame). The American Progress was one of the murals that Sert created for the decoration of the Rockefeller Center. John D. Rockefeller's initial idea was to create a centre whose nucleus should be an opera house, but, due to the "Great Depression", the project was reduced to a commercial and office complex. In order to make the building more attractive to potential tenants, the commission in charge of the decoration of the entire Rockefeller Center entrusted the murals in the grand foyer to the artists Franck Brangwyn, Diego Rivera, José María Sert and Pablo Picasso. It seems that the latter refused to submit a preliminary sketch and was therefore eliminated. Rockefeller's chosen theme for the murals was the dominance of man over modern civilisation, and the instructions to be followed were: The paintings were to be done in black, white and grey. This new humanism, which exalted the values of the past and encouraged the idea of progress paralysed by the crash of 1929, was consistent with Sert's modernist and noucentista postulates. He was entrusted with four canvases in which he was to express man's new dominion over the material world: his power, his will, his imagination and his genius. These four compositions are a prelude to those he was to produce a few years later for the League of Nations in Geneva. Both sets form part of his most important public works, and are what brought him international fame and status, making him one of the most important muralists of his time. In these works the artist expresses the march of mankind on earth, the perennial struggle and conflict of being human, the history of his efforts and his most spectacular achievements: industrial progress, the development of medicine, the homage to the anonymous victims of slavery and the enthusiasm for peace. Strength and power are emphasised by the grandiose phallic symbols of converging cannons, immense ruined columns, false idols, skyscrapers emerging from the clouds, cyclopean blocks and compact tumult. The apology for American progress, the personal plastic discourse, the grandiloquent symbolism, the interlinking of figures of different scales and the scenographic conception tinged with romanticism aroused such admiration among the public and patrons that in 1940 he was commissioned to paint five more murals, including the ceiling of the great hall. There he depicted Time in the form of three gigantic figures striding across the columns supporting the ceiling: Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery.
Setdart Auction House
Mar. 29, 2023
JOSE MARIA SERT Y BADIA Barcelona (1900 / 1945) "Jesus among the doctors"
Est: €42,000 - €56,000
Mixed technique on canvas Signed on the lower left side Measurements: 125 x 200 cm
Ansorena
Mar. 13, 2023
JOSE MARIA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). “Sketch for one of the murals in the Ballroom of Prince Alexis Mdivani (Venice)” Oil on cardboard. Provenance: Duclós private collection, gift of the artist. Presents label on the back.
Est: €32,000 - €35,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Sketch for one of the murals in the Ballroom of Prince Alexis Mdivani (Venice)". Oil on cardboard. Provenance: Duclós private collection, gift of the artist. It has damage caused by the adhesion of the paint to the glass. It has a label on the back. Measurements: 45 x 112 cm; 50,5 x 117 cm (frame). In this work painted in oil on cardboard, several papers can be seen arranged symmetrically on the composition. They emulate the openings or spaces dedicated to the doors and the chimney located in the building for which this ornamentation was conceived. This sketch, conceived for the decoration of Prince Alexis Mdivani's ballroom, grew out of the painter's friendship with Roussadana Mdivani. In fact, the artist himself financed the education in London of the youngest of the Alexis Mdivani family, who after his marriage to Barbara Hutton acquired a palace in Venice. Sert was commissioned to decorate this palace with a complex fantasy-inspired design, as can be seen in this sketch for one of the walls of the Ballroom. This particular piece belongs to the Duclós collection, forming part of the decoration of the famous Duclós house, which the artist gave to his cousin María Benita López Sert as a wedding present. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
Mar. 13, 2023
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Quixote, 1902. Charcoal and chalk on paper.
Est: €12,000 - €14,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Quixote, 1902. Charcoal and chalk on paper. There is slight wear on the pictorial surface. Provenance: Duclós private collection, gift of the artist. Signed and dated in the lower right corner. Measurements: 91.5 x 71.5 cm; 112 x 91.5 cm (frame). The masterly way in which José María Sert masters charcoal and chalk gives rise to an image of sensual and delicate aesthetics where a powdered atmosphere welcomes the monumental figure of Don Quixote de la Mancha. The importance of this literary character in Spanish culture made him an ideal worthy of immortality. In fact, Sert, who created this work in 1902, turned to the theme of Don Quixote on several occasions as an inexhaustible source of inspiration, an example of which was the decoration of the dining room of the prestigious Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, where he brought to life numerous passages from Cervantes' novel. This particular piece belongs to the Duclós collection, forming part of the decoration of the famous Duclós house, which the artist gave to his cousin María Benita López Sert as a wedding present. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian art scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
Feb. 16, 2023
JOSEP MARIA SERT
Est: €8,000 - €15,000
Josep Maria Sert (Barcelona, 1874-1945) La Ley y El Progreso Social o La Abolición de la esclavitud. Óleo y pan de oro sobre papel adherido a tabla. Realizado 1934-1935. José María Sert fue un pintor y muralista catalán postmodernista de proyección universal. Formado en la Escuela de Artes y Oficios de la Lonja y la Academia de Pedro Borrell (Barcelona), seguidor de Alexandre de Riquer y miembro del círculo artístico de Sant Lluc, en 1899 se trasladó a Paris para completar su formación y abrir su taller en 1900, convirtiéndose en uno de los muralistas más emblemáticos de Europa y América. El estilo pictórico de Sert fue influenciado por la pintura barroca y la obra de Tiépolo y Goya como sus principales modelos. Se especializó en la técnica de grisalla, el uso de la monocromía dorada con tonos ocres, tierra y panes de oro y plata. Sus obras más destacadas son las decoraciones murales para: la Catedral de Vic (España), la residencia de Francisco Cambó (España), la del barón de Rothschild (Francia), el castillo de Philip Sassoon (Gran Bretaña), el comedor del hotel Waldorf Astoria (Estados Unidos), las dependencias del Rockefeller Center (Estados Unidos) y la sala Francisco de Vitoria en Palacio de Naciones de Ginebra (Suiza). Por mediación de Salvador de Madariaga, Sert se encargó de la ornamentación de la gran Sala de los Consejos del Palacio de las Naciones en Ginebra desarrollando una serie de alegorías de la guerra y la paz, del progreso de la humanidad, de la justicia y del derecho internacional (1935-36), dedicada al dominico Francisco de Vitoria (1483-1546) y hoy una de las sedes de la ONU. El tema oficial era la aportación del derecho español del siglo XVII al derecho internacional, representado por Francisco de Vitoria y otros profesores de la Universidad de Salamanca. Como era habitual en él Josep Maria Sert repasó minuciosamente cada una de las escenas con numerosos estudios y bocetos. La pintura que presentamos es el segundo de los tres ensayos que realizó para dos de las composiciones del muro lateral derecho. Como indica el Doctor Santiago Alcolea: “Realizada con una técnica rápida y espontánea, utiliza con seguridad los raspados de la pintura fresca para definir formas y también hace servir las puntas de los dedos para atenuar los excesos de materia pictórica, tal y como evidencian las diversas huellas digitales que podemos descubrir en diversos puntos de la superficie del cuadro”. Adjunta informe del Dr. Santiago Alcolea, director del Instituto Ametller de Arte Hispánico. Bibliografía: “El patrimonio cultural del palacio de las naciones: Los murales de José María Sert”, por Arturo Colorado. Edita Naciones Unidas. Nueva York, 1985. “José María Sert. Su vida y su obra”, por Alberto del Castillo. Librería Editorial Argos, S.A. Barcelona-Buenos Aires, 1947. Pág.: 261 Láms. 182,183 y 184. “José María Sert 1874-1945”. Catálogo de la exposición celebrada en el Palacio de Velázquez, Parque del Buen Retiro. Págs.: 192-197. Madrid, Octubre 1987-Enero 1988. Procedencia: Colección Privada, Madrid. Colección Privada, Barcelona. 65,5 x 145,5 cm.
Aletheia Subastas
Jan. 25, 2023
Jose Maria Sert Badia. elephants. sinbad
Est: -
Oil on table. Lack of painting in the lower right corner. This work is a sketch of one of the nine decorative panels with the theme "The Adventures of Sinbad the Sailor" painted at the Residence of Mr. S. Cosden Palm Beach, 1924. \ r Bibliography: see plate 45 of the work "Jose María Sert his life and his work" by Alberto del Castillo, Bookstore Editorial Argos SA, Barcelona-Buenos Aires 1947. On page 117 "The composition next to Sinbad's Landing represents the cemetery guarded by the elephants with a pyramidal foreground made up of the large animals at the moment of breaking the tree on whose top the hero is mounted (Plate 45).In the background, which, like all the backgrounds of Being, is on a plane horizontal much lower than the first term, the assembly of proboscideans can be distinguished at the entrance of the forest, and a phosphorescent river that meanders away towards the horizon".
Duran Arte y Subastas
Nov. 24, 2022
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADÍA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Farewell", 1932. Oil on compressed clay paste. Provenance: collection of a Spanish aristocrat.
Est: €40,000 - €50,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADÍA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Farewell", 1932. Oil on compressed clay paste. Provenance: collection of a Spanish aristocrat. Work reproduced in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto Castillo and Alexandre Cirici Pellicer, Editorial Argós, Plate 151, 1949. Size: 100 x 150 cm. In 1932 José María Sert produced his second series of tapestry cartoons, commissioned by the French state for the Gobelins factory in Paris. The oil painting we are now bidding for, which belongs to this series, was intended to be placed above a door, so that it corresponds to a decoration that has to be seen from below, which is why it depicts the two figures perched on a scaffolding. Sert worked the composition in a totally distinctive manner, always bearing in mind the place where it was to be placed, depicting the figures with large feet and large hands. They have plebeian faces with flat noses and full lips, and show a special concern for the balance of the two plastic masses. Other examples from this series, such as "La siesta de los segadores" ("The Harvesters' Nap"), are kept in the Museum of Fine Arts in Álava. Although José María Sert produced up to nine tapestries, the project never materialised and he ended up selling the paintings to various private clients. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 25, 2022
Jose María Sert Badía. Elephants. Simbad
Est: -
Oil on board. Lack of paint in the lower right corner. This work is a sketch of one of the nine decorative panels with the theme "The Adventures of Sinbad the Sailor" painted in the Residence of Mr. S. Cosden Palm Beach, 1924. Bibliography: see plate 45 of the work "Jose María Sert his life and his work" by Alberto del Castillo, Librería Editorial Ar gos SA, Barcelona-Buenos Aires 1947. On page 117 "The composition next to Sinbad's Landing represents the cemetery guarded by the elephants with a pyramid-shaped first term made up of the large animals at the moment of breaking the tree on whose top the hero is mounted (lam.45) In the background, which like all the backgrounds of Being is on a much lower horizontal plane than the foreground,
Duran Arte y Subastas
Oct. 20, 2022
JOSEP MARÍA SERT. Two Gothic-Renaissance ladies and a gentleman.
Est: €700 - €800
Three gouache drawings on tracing paper. Theatre costumes for some unidentified project with a Gothic-Renaissance setting. One of the cardboard supports with a charcoal drawing on the back. 40x16 cm (passe-partout windwos).
Balclis
Oct. 19, 2022
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Calvary". Sketch for the nave of the epistle in Vic Cathedral, 1925-1927. Mixed technique on canvas. Attached Intitut Amatller d'Art Hispànic.
Est: €50,000 - €60,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Calvari". Sketch for the epistle aisle in Vic Cathedral, 1925-1927. Mixed media on canvas. Attached Intitut Amatller d'art hispànic. Measurements: 120 x 120 cm; 140 X 140 cm (frame). -Bibliography: -Catàleg de l'exposició José María Sert; 1874-1945. (palacio de Velázquez; Parque del Retiro, Madrid, 27 Oct, 1987 - 3 Jan. 1988) Ministry of Culture Directorate General of Fine Arts and Archives, National Exhibition Centre. -Eduard JUNYENT; La decoració pictórica de la Catedral de Vich. Editorial Seráfica; Vic, 1936. -Alberto del CASTILLO; José María Sert, His life and work, Editorial Argos, Barcelona, 1947 (pp. 149 and 152, lams. 93 and 94). Although this work was commissioned in 1900, Sert did not present the first sketches until six years later, busy with the numerous orders he received from the aristocrats of the time. The First World War interrupted the work and once it was resumed, Sert felt he had to modify the approach, eliminating colour and therefore rethinking the perspectives in order to obtain depth. It was completed in 1929, but only seven years later it was destroyed. Shocked, Sert accepted the restoration of the cathedral, basing it this time on a set of bas-reliefs which he did not complete until the year of his death.José María Sert was one of the most sought-after and controversial painters of his time and one of the best Spanish muralists. Heir to the Catalan Renaixença and trained as a modernist, he developed a pictorial style outside the stylistic trends of his time. These characteristics make him a renovator of mural painting and a prolific artist who painted more than seven thousand square metres of cathedrals, palaces, great halls, private residences and town halls in various cities, but without doubt the work that was most present throughout his life was the decoration of Vic Cathedral. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by great imagination in the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Orientalism.
Setdart Auction House
Oct. 19, 2022
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Mixed technique on canvas. It presents restorations and slight faults on the pictorial surface. Signed in the lower right corner.
Est: €40,000 - €50,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). Mixed media on canvas. With restorations and slight flaws on the pictorial surface. Signed in the lower right-hand corner. Size: 125 x 200 cm; 128 x 202 cm (frame). Due to its composition and subject matter, this work is very reminiscent of the works carried out by José María Sert in the church of San Telmo. In 1930 the San Sebastián City Council commissioned José María Sert, on the recommendation of the painter Ignacio Zuloaga, to paint eleven canvases for the church of the convent of San Telmo, a Renaissance building that the municipal corporation had acquired twenty years earlier with the intention of converting it into a museum. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and had solo exhibitions in London at the Agnew Gallery. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He painted new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, to great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic in the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and patron Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was made a member of the Academy of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, painting important murals such as those in the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid and the Council Chamber of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterised by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by Goya's Orientalism and Expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
Jun. 21, 2022
Jose María Sert Badía. Elephants. Simbad
Est: -
Oil on board. Lack of paint in the lower right corner. This work is a sketch of one of the nine decorative panels with the theme "The Adventures of Sinbad the Sailor" painted in the Residence of Mr. S. Cosden Palm Beach, 1924. Bibliography: see plate 45 of the work "Jose María Sert his life and his work" by Alberto del Castillo, Librería Editorial Ar gos SA, Barcelona-Buenos Aires 1947. On page 117 "The composition next to Sinbad's Landing represents the cemetery guarded by the elephants with a pyramid-shaped first term made up of the large animals at the moment of breaking the tree on whose top the hero is mounted (lam.45) In the background, which like all the backgrounds of Being is on a much lower horizontal plane than the foreground,
Duran Arte y Subastas
Jun. 09, 2022
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874-1945) "Seventh Beatitude" Sketch for the nave of the epistle in the cathedral of Vic, 1925-1927 Oil on canvas in the shape of a lunette.
Est: €16,000 - €18,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945) "Seventh Beatitude" Sketch for the nave of the Epistle in Vic Cathedral, 1925-1927. Oil on canvas in the form of a lunette. Re-drawn. Work referenced in; ALBERTO DEL CASTILLO, "José María Sert, his life and work". Barcelona - Buenos Aires. 1947. Lam.106. Size: 120 x 242 (frame: 132 x 254). This work in hemispherical format is the presentation model for one of the mural paintings in Vic Cathedral belonging to the lateral lunettes of the Epistle nave. The central opening of the sketch corresponds to the architectural niche in the wall. The piece known as the VII Beatitude alludes to the words of the Gospel according to Saint Matthew (Matthew V): "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God". Dominating the centre of the scene, the imposing presence of Saint Angelo's castle can be recognised in the upper part of the lunette. To the right of the scene, flanking the lunette, we can see the figure of Saint Leo facing Attila, located in the lower part of the image. The king of the Huns is accompanied by his army, which has been structured by the artist, creating great depth in the scene. On the left-hand side of the composition, Sert portrays the saint receiving the olive branch from the hands of Saint Michael the Archangel, Saint Paul and Saint Peter, sheltered under a large tree, next to which can be seen a small little love child. The original painting of the cathedral was destroyed during the Civil War, so this sketch is an important surviving graphic document of the painter, which was subsequently used for the reconstruction of the mural. Although this work was commissioned in 1900, Sert did not present the first sketches until six years later, busy with the numerous orders he received from the aristocrats of the time. The First World War interrupted the work and once it was resumed, Sert felt he had to modify the approach, eliminating colour and therefore rethinking the perspectives in order to obtain depth. It was completed in 1929, but only seven years later it was destroyed. Shocked, Sert accepted the restoration of the cathedral, basing it this time on a set of bas-reliefs which he did not complete until the year of his death.José María Sert was one of the most sought-after and controversial painters of his time and one of the best Spanish muralists. Heir to the Catalan Renaixença and trained as a modernist, he developed a pictorial style outside the stylistic trends of his time. These characteristics make him a renovator of mural painting and a prolific artist who painted more than seven thousand square metres of cathedrals, palaces, great halls, private residences and town halls in various cities, but without doubt the work that was most present throughout his life was the decoration of Vic Cathedral. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) at the Salon d'Automne in Paris and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly).
Setdart Auction House
May. 24, 2022
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT - El Alud. Crónica de los Almogávares
Est: €43,000 - €86,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT Barcelona 1874-1945 The Avalanche. Chronicle of the Almogávares. c. 1926 Oil and gold leaf on canvas Manuscript on the back by one of the artist's assistants: Deuxème Esquisserde Panneau "El Alud" pour dècorative de la Salle des Chroniques of the City Hall of Barcelona Spain MCMXXVI Size 200 x 165 cm We would like to thank Pilar Sáez Lacave for her help in cataloging this work. Sketch for the panel that will be located in the Hall of Chronicles of the Barcelona City Council, the commission was made by the then mayor of the city, the Baron de Viver, signed in October 1928, with a view to the decoration of the town hall, which at that time was under restoration, inaugurated by Alfonso XII and Victoria Eugenia, on the occasion of the 1929 International Exhibition The work represents an episode of the "Almogávares Chronicles", narrated by Ramón Muntaner. In 1303 some 5,000 mercenaries landed in the city of Constantinople to serve the Byzantine Empire against the Turks. The MNAC has a sketch of the same scene inventoried under number 43989, it is an oil on canvas but in a smaller format.
Subastas Segre
Mar. 15, 2022
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Puppets". Sketch for the paintings in the dining room of Harrison Williams, 1933. Oil on canvas.
Est: €2,000 - €2,400
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Puppets". Sketch for the paintings in the dining room of Harrison Williams, 1933. Oil on canvas. Another similar sketch is catalogued in "José María Sert. 1874-1945)", Ministry of Culture, Directorate General of Fine Arts and Archives, p.174. Measurements: 37 x 18 cm; 49 x 28 cm (frame). Following the statements made by Alberto del Castillo in his book "José María Sert. His life and work" together with Alexandre Cirici, "In 1933 José María Sert left the decoration of the dining room of the house of Mr. Harrison Williams, in New York, for whom he had already painted the decoration of his tennis pavilion in Long Island in 1926. The theme chosen for the five panels that made up this decoration was the evocation of Spain, which the artist resolved in the form of mock balconies populated by picturesque types. The balcony scene, which had been used in a pompous manner by the great Venetian artists, had received its realist consecration with Goya, in the sense that it would later be imitated by Manet. Sert knew how to make the theme his own, giving it a new twist, without falling into the Spanish pastiche of today's pompiers who have tried to imitate Goya's solution. The character of these Sertian balconies has a lot of innocent theatrical artifice, of puppet theatre, which lends a certain note of irony that cures all pedantic intonation. Thus, graceful, almost magazine-style, without a hint of megalomania, the balconies of this dining room smile, with clear and varied intonations, against a grey background. Their immediate precedent is undoubtedly the balconies of the Buenos Aires rooftop of the columpios, in the Pereda palace, where, as here, the balcony is combined with the note of coloured fabrics and a certain allusion to folkloric costumes". Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly).
Setdart Auction House
Mar. 15, 2022
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Puppets". Sketch for the paintings in the dining room of Harrison Williams, 1933. Oil on canvas.
Est: €2,000 - €2,400
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Puppets". Sketch for the paintings in the dining room of Harrison Williams, 1933. Oil on canvas. Another similar sketch is catalogued in "José maría Sert. Su vida y su obra", Alberto del Castillo, Librería Editorial Argos S.A., fig. 65, p. 224. Measurements: 37 x 18 cm; 49 x 28 cm (frame). Following the statements made by Alberto del Castillo in his book "José María Sert. His life and work" together with Alexandre Cirici, "In 1933 José María Sert left the decoration of the dining room in the house of Mr. Harrison Williams, in New York, for whom he had already painted the decoration of his tennis pavilion on Long Island in 1926. The theme chosen for the five panels that made up this decoration was the evocation of Spain, which the artist resolved in the form of mock balconies populated by picturesque types. The balcony scene, which had been used in a pompous manner by the great Venetian artists, had received its realist consecration with Goya, in the sense that it would later be imitated by Manet. Sert knew how to make the theme his own, giving it a new twist, without falling into the Spanish pastiche of today's pompiers who have tried to imitate Goya's solution. The character of these Sertian balconies has a lot of innocent theatrical artifice, of puppet theatre, which lends a certain note of irony that cures all pedantic intonation. Thus, graceful, almost magazine-style, without a hint of megalomania, the balconies of this dining room smile, with clear and varied intonations, against a grey background. Their immediate precedent is undoubtedly the balconies of the Buenos Aires roof of the columpios, in the Pereda palace, where, as here, the balcony is combined with the note of coloured fabrics and a certain allusion to folkloric costumes". Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned him to paint a large mural decoration for Vic Cathedral, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he produced sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly).
Setdart Auction House
Sep. 21, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT - Bird hunters
Est: €2,000 - €4,000
OSÉ MARÍA SERT Barcelona 1874-1945 Bird hunters. c. 1917 Gouache and gold leaf on canvas Size 19.5 x 37 cm We thank Dª Pilar Sáez Lacave for the collaboration, who provides us with the following information: "It may be a sketch made before from the First World War of an idea that is not carried out or that has been lost. Both possibilities seem plausible to me "
Subastas Segre
Jul. 15, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADÍA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Summer or Africa", 1920. Oil on canvas.
Est: €30,000 - €40,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADÍA (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Summer or Africa", 1920. Set of three preparatory sketches for the three definitive panels of the work "The Four Seasons", cladding for the dining room of the hunting lodge of the Château de Laversine (Chantilly, France), owned by the Barons de Rothschild. The final side panels (363 x 90 cm and 363 x 91 cm) are currently housed in the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía. The central one (310 x 173 cm), on the other hand, belongs to a private collection. Oil on canvas. Provenance: Manuel Barbié Gallery. Definitive work reproduced in "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto Castillo and Alexandre Cirici Pellicer, Editorial Argós, Plate 28, 1949. Bibliography consulted: "José María Sert. His life and work", Alberto Castillo and Alexandre Cirici Pellicer, Editorial Argós, 1949, p. 97. Sizes: 66 x 18 cm; 86 x 38 cm (frame) / 66 x 35 cm; 86 x 55 cm (frame) / 66 x 18 cm; 86 x 38 cm (frame). José María Sert decorated the Rothschild pavilion with a cycle of six mural paintings on wood representing different parts of the world, a subject that must have been on the artist's mind since he gave free rein to exoticism in the decorations of Kent House (1913) and in the scenes of "The Joy of Humanity" that decorated the walls of Lady Ripon's drawing room (1915). In Rothschild, the cycle of paintings of the four parts of the world were combined with the four seasons, so that Spring corresponded to Asia, Summer to Africa, Autumn to Europe and Winter to America. Alberto Castillo, an expert on the figure of Sert, notes: "These paintings are far superior in complexity to Sert's previous compositions, in which when multiple figures were presented, they were generally comparsas without personality. In this case, each figure has received special care and the groups have been composed with a meticulous attention to detail, which is uncommon in the artist's work". We are, therefore, in front of the preparatory sketches of the allegory of summer or Africa, consisting of three compositions: the most important (the central one) has in the foreground a group of characters on a background of palm trees. A monster seated on top of a grandstand, with its front legs on the mythical mirror ball and its enormous jaws open, suffers the arrows of three archers who, mysteriously, draw their bows without visible strings. Next to the monster, sinister characters, such as a fairground charlatan and two figures struggling with each other; the panels that complete this African scene (right and left) show us fantastically dressed figures accompanied by small elephants varnished in blue. The three compositions ultimately present trunks carrying a large candle, in a primitivist manner, in a compositional display typical of one of the geniuses of Catalan painting. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned a large mural decoration for the cathedral of Vic, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he created sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and exhibited individually in London, in the Agnew room. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He made new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, before a great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and protector Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was named academician of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those of the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid or the council hall of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterized by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by orientalism and the expressionism of his style.
Setdart Auction House
Jul. 07, 2021
Josep Maria Sert
Est: -
Josep Maria Sert (Barcelona, 1874-1945). Despedida de Jesús después de la Santa Cena, óleo sobre lienzo, 53x66 cm. Boceto preparatorio para el original realizado para decorar el fondo del crucero de la catedral de Vich, que fue destruida durante la Guerra Civil. En la década de los 40, tras su reconstrucción, Sert pintaría de nuevo los muros con la misma temática, pero en esta ocasión cambiando su disposición iconográfica. Bibliografía de referencia: Del Castilo Alberto: "José María Sert. Su vida y su obra", Argos, Barcelona, 1997. Véase pág. 153 y lám. 99 .
Sala de Ventas
Jun. 09, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Garlands", ca. 1900 - 1915. Preparatory charcoal drawing on paper.
Est: €9,000 - €10,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Garlands", ca. 1900 - 1915. Preparatory charcoal drawing on paper. Attached classification sheet of the Institut Amatller d’Art Hispànic. Measurements: 59 x 87 cm; 84 x 113 cm (frame). From the format and composition, this preparatory drawing was possibly conceived by José María Sert to solve the pictorial decoration of a dome, the result of the multiple ornamental pictorial commissions that the artist received throughout his career. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned a large mural decoration for the cathedral of Vic, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he created sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and exhibited individually in London, in the Agnew room. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He made new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, before a great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and protector Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was named academician of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those of the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid or the council hall of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterized by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by orientalism and Goya's expressionism, a chromaticism almost exclusively based on golden and sepia tones, and a style of painting in which the colors were almost exclusively based on gold and sepia tones.
Setdart Auction House
Jun. 09, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Centaures i figures". Paris, ca. 1913. Preparatory charcoal drawing on paper attached to board.
Est: €12,000 - €13,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT (Barcelona, 1874 - 1945). "Centaures i figures". Paris, ca. 1913. Preparatory charcoal drawing on paper attached to board. It presents dedication and signature in the lower left corner "Herva de Regnier (?) / Hommage respectueux JM Sert". Attached certificate of authenticity issued by the Institut Amatller d’Art Hispànic. The frame is slightly damaged. Measurements: 43 x 113 cm; 57.5 x 125.5 cm (frame). In 1913, Sert painted the decoration of two adjoining rooms (the ballroom and the music room) in the residence of Sir Saxton Noble, in Kent House, London. In the first of these rooms, also known as the Hall of the Bocraneans, the artist depicted two large scenes, one dedicated to the Triumph of Bacchus and a second that could correspond to the Triumph of Orpheus. The drawing in question shows remarkable compositional and conceptual coincidences with the aforementioned works, so that it is fully justified to consider it as a preliminary study for this decorative ensemble. Thus we see how the two centaurs on the right are very close to those of the Triumph of Orpheus; or how the center of the scene is occupied by a couple of young people, while the centaur on the left occupies the same space as the group of pachyderms of the final work, being necessary to highlight the formal equivalence that occurs between the garland held by the two children of the study and the trunk of the elephant closest to the viewer of the painting. At the same time, it should be noted that some of the motifs found in the drawing seem to have been transferred to the Triumph of Bacchus, such as the reference to the central couple, the fanciful ligature of the young protagonist that corresponds to the crowns of screens of several characters in the painting, or the multitude of large tubs that occupy the background of the composition. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned a large mural decoration for the cathedral of Vic, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he created sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and exhibited individually in London, in the Agnew room. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", a muse of the Parisian artistic scene, in Paris. He made new murals for important houses in Park Lane (England), Buenos Aires, Palm Beach and Paris, and in 1926 he made, before a great expectation, an exhibition of his works for the cathedral of Vic the Jeu de Paume in Paris. In 1927, with the support of his friend and protector Francesc Cambó, he completed the main part of the cathedral's decoration, which was completed with the construction of the lunettes between 1928 and 1929. In 1930 he was named academician of San Fernando, and in the following years he worked all over the world, creating important murals such as those of the Waldorf Astoria in New York, the chapel of the Palacio de Liria in Madrid or the council hall of the League of Nations in Geneva. He was the most eminent decorative painter of his time, and his style was characterized by a great imagination at the service of a rhetorical language influenced by orientalism and Goya's expressionism.
Setdart Auction House
May. 18, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADÍA (Barcelona, 1874-1945). "Summer or Africa", 1920. Set of three preparatory sketches for the three final panels of the work "The Four Seasons"
Est: €50,000 - €60,000
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT BADÍA (Barcelona, 1874-1945). "Summer or Africa", 1920. Set of three preparatory sketches for the three final panels of the work "The Four Seasons", cladding for the dining room of the hunting palace of the Château de Laversine (Chantilly, France), owned by the barons of Rothschild. The side panels (363 x 90 cm and 363 x 91) are currently in the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía. The central one (310 x 173 cm) belongs to a private collection. Oil on canvas. Provenance: Manuel Barbié Gallery. Definitive work reproduced in “José María Sert. His life and his work ”, Alberto Castillo and Alexandre Cirici Pellicer, Editorial Argós, Plate 28, 1949. Measurements: 66 x 18 cm; 86 x 38 cm (frame) / 66 x 35 cm; 86 x 55 cm (frame) / 66 x 18 cm; 86 x 38 cm (frame). José María Sert decorated the Rothschild pavilion with six mural paintings on wood representing the different parts of the world, a subject that must have been on the artist's mind since he gave free rein to exoticism in the decorations of Kent House and in the scenes of "The Joy of Humanity" that decorated the walls of Lady Ripon's drawing room. In Rothschild the four parts of the world were combined with the four seasons, so that Spring corresponded to Asia, Summer to Africa, Autumn to Europe and Winter to America. Alberto Castillo, an expert on the figure of Sert, notes: "These paintings are far superior in complexity to Sert's previous compositions, in which when multiple figures were presented, they were generally comparsas without personality. In this case, each figure has received special care and the groups have been composed with a meticulous attention to detail, which is uncommon in the artist's work". We find ourselves, therefore, in front of the allegory of summer, formed by three compositions: the most important (the central one) has in the foreground a group of characters on a background of palm trees. A monster seated on top of a grandstand, with its front legs on the mythical mirror ball and its enormous jaws open, suffers the arrows of three archers who, mysteriously, draw their bows without visible strings. Next to the monster, sinister characters, such as a fairground charlatan and two figures struggling with each other; the panels that complete this African scene (right and left) show us fantastically dressed figures accompanied by small elephants varnished in blue. The three compositions ultimately present trunks carrying a large candle, in a primitivist manner, in a compositional display typical of one of the geniuses of Catalan painting. Trained with Benito Mercadé and Pere Borrell, Sert was a member of the Círculo Artístico de Sant Lluc, and later a disciple of A. de Riquer. In 1900 Torras i Bages commissioned a large mural decoration for the cathedral of Vic, of which he presented sketches and preparatory canvases in 1905 and 1907 in Barcelona and Paris, of which this piece is an example. Through his exhibitions abroad, he soon acquired extraordinary prestige among the French and English aristocracy, for whom he created sumptuous decorations. In 1908 he decorated the Sala de los Pasos Perdidos of the Palace of Justice in Barcelona, and in 1910 he presented at the Salon d'Automne in Paris the mural decoration of the ballroom of the Marquis of Alella (Barcelona) and decorated the music room of the Princess of Polignac in Paris. Two years later he exhibited an important group of works at the Salon in the French capital. In the following years he worked for Queen Victoria Eugenia (Santander) and for Robert Rotschild (Chantilly), and exhibited individually in London, in the Agnew room. In 1920 he married Maria Godebska, "Misia", muse of the ambience, in Paris.
Setdart Auction House
Mar. 11, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT. "Sanchopancismo".
Est: €7,000 - €8,000
Oil on panel Sketch for the tapestries commissioned by the Gobelin Factory. Paris, 1932-1933. Bibliography and exhibition: Antonio del Castillo and Cirici Pellicer "José María Sert, his life and his work", Barcelona - Buenos Aires, Librería Editorial Argos SA, 1947, p. 209, plate. 155 (reproduced); "José María Sert 1874-1945", Madrid, General Directorate of Fine Arts and Archives, National Exhibition Center, 1988, p. 168 (reproduced) 61.5x49 cm.
Balclis
Mar. 11, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT. "Jealousy".
Est: €7,000 - €8,000
Oil on panel Sketch for the tapestries commissioned by the Gobelin Factory. Made in Paris between 1932 and 1933. Bibliography and exhibition: Antonio del Castillo and Cirici Pellicer "José María Sert, his life and his work", Barcelona - Buenos Aires, Librería Editorial Argos SA, 1947, p. 209, plate. 154 (reproduced); "José María Sert 1874-1945", Madrid, General Directorate of Fine Arts and Archives, National Exhibition Center, 1988, p. 168 (reproduced) 60.5x49 cm.
Balclis
Mar. 11, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT. "El vendedor de vinos".
Est: €7,000 - €8,000
Oil on wood Sketch for the tapestries commissioned by King Alfonso XIII of Spain for the Real Fábrica de Tapices, 1922-1923. Literature and exhibition: Antonio del Castillo and Cirici Pellicer "José María Sert, su vida y su obra", Barcelona - Buenos Aires, Librería Editorial Argos S. A., 1947, p. 119-120, sheet 52 (reproduced); "José María Sert 1874-1945", Madrid, Dirección General de Bellas Artes y Archivos, Centro Nacional de exposiciones, 1988, p. 108 (reproduced). 49x53 cm.
Balclis
Mar. 11, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT. "The gold fish".
Est: €7,000 - €8,000
Oil on panel Sketch for the tapestries commissioned by King Alfonso XIII for the Royal Tapestry Factory, 1922-1923. Bibliography and exhibition: Antonio del Castillo and Cirici Pellicer "José María Sert, his life and his work", Barcelona - Buenos Aires, Librería Editorial Argos SA, 1947, p. 118, plate. 50 (reproduced); "José María Sert 1874-1945", Madrid, General Directorate of Fine Arts and Archives, National Exhibition Center, 1988, p. 107 (reproduced) 49x52.5 cm.
Balclis
Mar. 11, 2021
JOSÉ MARÍA SERT. "Carousel".
Est: €7,000 - €8,000
Oil on wood Sketch for the tapestries commissioned by King Alphonse XIII of Spain for Real Fábrica de Tapices, 1922-1923. Literature and exhibition: Antonio del Castillo and Cirici Pellicer "José María Sert, su vida y su obra", Barcelona - Buenos Aires, Librería Editorial Argos S. A., 1947, p. 118-119, sheet 49 (reproduced); "José María Sert 1874-1945", Madrid, Dirección General de Bellas Artes y Archivos, Centro Nacional de exposiciones, 1988, p. 108 (reproduced). 50.5x73 cm.
Balclis