Lot 12: Paul Guiragossian (Lebanon, 1926-1993) L'Enfant Gâté

Paul Guiragossian (Lebanon, 1926-1993)
L'Enfant Gâté oil on canvas, framedsigned "Paul G" (lower left), executed circa 1986100 x 73cm (39 3/8 x 28 3/4in).

Provenance:Property from a private collection, UKAcquired directly from the Artist by the present owners in Lebanon circa 1980sNote:This work is sold with a photo certificate from the Paul Guiragossian Foundation"They taught us in History that there have been heroes who led fearless battles such as Alexander the Great who killed thousands of men on the shores of Saida and Tyre. He is considered a hero?...They call Napoleon a Hero. What kind of hero kills thousands of people in frozen temperatures like in Austerlitz and is considered a hero? Who is a Hero besides the Mother?. The Mother is the Symbol of purity, faith and unconditional Love and the greatest secret in the Universe is Love" - Paul GuiragossianAn emotionally captivating composition; here Guiragossian celebrates and glorifies motherhood by painting allusions to the religious icons of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus. The figures are dressed in a soft pastel colour palette infusing a sense of warmth, positivity and hope. The light blue tones against the yellow and pink create a gentle aesthetic and beautiful harmony. The proximity of the faceless elongated figures with their arms wrapped around the new born baby suggests the coming together of a family and the intimate and eternal bond between them regardless of their fear and displacement due to the war. The female figure is seen visible throughout Guiragossian's oeuvre; the fascination with the mother being the vital support system through good and bad. She is the caretaker and the bearer of life and plays a central role and a key subject matter in many of the artist's paintings.'L'Enfant Gâté' reflects a reality both deeply personal and universally relatable; as Guiragossian's obsession with the subject matter transcends from his own eternal longing for his own mother. On closer inspection, the viewer comes to realise there is in an underlying tone of sadness and mourning that in fact permeates all of Guiragossian's canvases.