Lot 55: Yves Gaucher 1934 - 2000 Canadian acrylic on

Yves Gaucher 1934 - 2000 Canadian acrylic on canvas R - M - I 80 x 80 inches 203.2 x 203.2 centimeters on verso signed, titled and dated 1969 Provenance:Acquired directly from the Artist by the present Private Collection, Toronto Yves Gaucher began his Grey on Grey paintings at the end of 1967. Although he had envisioned perhaps a dozen works, he continued to paint this series until October of 1969. Ultimately, they provide us with a summary of the artist's oeuvre to that point, and became one of his most widely appreciated series, both in Canada and abroad. To describe paintings like R - M - I as subtle or minimalist is clearly an understatement. Many great paintings appear, at first glance, to be almost obtuse in their simplicity, daring us to plumb their depths. Gaucher's work from all periods, including those where the colour is strong and vibrant, require a patient viewer. Although the prevailing colour in each painting reads as grey, the individual works have underlying grounds of blue-grey, green-grey, and so forth. The horizontal lines are in a range of white hues, barely differentiated in colour; and as with all of Gaucher's work, tonal variations are meant both for the eye and the ear. The delicate hues and tonality of R - M - I invite us to learn the painting's secrets, and the rewards of reading it thoroughly are well worth the effort.