Mark Tobey Gouache / Watercolor Painting, 1962

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Exceptional Antiquities Ethnographic Fine Art...

By Artemis Gallery

Oct 7, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-10-07 10:00:00 2021-10-07 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities Ethnographic Fine Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-ethnographic-fine-art-7537
Museum-worthy examples of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Near Eastern, Far East / Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Native American, Spanish Colonial, Fossils, Ancient Jewelry, Fine / Visual Arts, so much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com

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• Lot Description
  1003Mark Tobey (American, 1890-1976). Untitled gouache and watercolor on paper, 1962. Signed and dated on lower right corner. A Mark Tobey abstract composition, finely delineated in gouache and watercolor with Tobey's signature "white writing" swirls and gestures over a serene background of muted sage green and earthtone hues. Tobey started working with this technique in 1934 - a year he called his "Chinese and Japanese year" - when he studied calligraphy in San Francisco and began to explore "white writing." Tobey was also inspired by the ink paintings of China and Japan and claimed he was "freed from form by the influence of the calligraphic." This liberating spontaneity is certainly evident in this work which was created nearly three decades later. Size: 19" L x 10" W (48.3 cm x 25.4 cm) Size of frame: 27.75" L x 17.625" W (70.5 cm x 44.8 cm)
  
  Mark Tobey made significant contributions to the development of abstraction in mid-century modernism. A recent exhibition entitled, "Mark Tobey: Threading Light" held at the Addison Gallery of American Art (November 4, 2017 - March 11, 2018) is giving the artist well-deserved kudos for his lyrical calligraphic renderings and a technique he called "white writing" demonstrated in this piece. According to the Addison Gallery, "One of the foremost American artists to emerge from the 1940s, a decade that saw the rise of abstract expressionism, Mark Tobey (1890–1976) is recognized as a vanguard figure whose 'white-writing' anticipated the formal innovations of New York School artists such as Jackson Pollock. When Tobey first displayed his paintings composed of intricate, pale webs of delicate lines in New York in 1944, he generated much interest with his daring 'all-over' compositions that eliminated narrative and three-dimensional space but retained references to the human figure."
  
  Indeed, while some have compared Tobey's compositions to the mature works of Jackson Pollock, since they present similar animated matrix-like patterns, it is true that Tobey's work actually predated Pollock's. According to the "Mark Tobey Advance of History" essay published on the Guggenheim Museum's website, "Although the development of allover compositions in abstract painting is often associated with Pollock, Tobey in fact exhibited works without compositional focus or orientation as early as 1944, two years before Pollock made his first allover painting."
  
  This work is accompanied by a wonderful catalogue entitled "Mark Tobey" which was published for an exhibition at M. Knoedler & Co. at 21 East 70th Street, New York, N.Y. that took place April 10 to May 1, 1976. The catalogue includes opening statements from Arthur Rimbaud and Mark Tobey, an essay about Tobey's artistic development and career by John Ashbery, 56 plates of Tobey's works, a chronological biography, and the catalogue list of works in the exhibition. While the piece featured in this lot is not illustrated in the catalogue, works that are similar to it are featured in the catalogue.
  
  Mark Tobey's work may be found in the permanent collections of major art museums throughout the world, and he has been the recipient of many important honors, including winning first prize for painting at the Venice Biennale in 1958. In addition, retrospectives of his work have been held at such esteemed institutions as the Seattle Art Museum (1959); Pasadena Art Museum (1960); Musee des Arts Decoratifs (Palais du Louvre) (1961); Art Institute Chicago (1963); Dallas Museum of Fine Arts (1968); Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid, Spain (1998); and Addison Gallery of American Art (2017-2018).
  
  This piece has been searched against the Art Loss Register database and has been cleared. The Art Loss Register maintains the world’s largest database of stolen art, collectibles, and antiques.
  
  Provenance: private Los Angeles, California, USA collection
  
  All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
  
  A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
  
  PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
  
  Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
  
  #167813

  Condition

  The painting has not been examined outside the frame. It appears to be very good save slight fading. It is signed and dated on the lower right corner. The gallery paper on the verso has been replaced. It is wired for suspension and ready to display. The accompanying catalogue shows expected age wear with some tape marks, stains, and loose pages. This said, it does have all of its pages.
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