Picasso, Matisse, Braque…
My dear readers,
The story with a big H is something fascinating. It is interesting to draw a parallel between the history of this world and the Art. Over the centuries, man has lost or destroyed many works for religious or sociological reasons. Some have destroyed it, others have fought to transmit it over the centuries in order to preserve the origins of this world and mainly our freedom of thought. This is the idea for which I went to visit this exhibition « 21 rue La Boétie ».
This exhibition was created because of a book written by the famous Anne Sinclair published in 2012 and entitled « 21 rue La Boétie ». Both retrace the journey of the author’s grandfather. This man was one of the great merchants of Art of the first half of the last century.
Having already read the book, this exhibition reminded me of the successful businessman Paul Rosenberg’s exceptional career. Friend and agent of illustrious people who shaped the 20th century such as Picasso, Matisse, Braque, Léger or even Marie Laurencin, simply to name only the most prestigious names. This proximity with such artists was rare and thanks to this, he enjoyed great notoriety in the art world.
Much more than a mere agent, we realize in the course of time, taht it turns out to be a true thread of a story that goes beyond it and of which, unfortunately, it has been both an actor and a victim.
An exhibition dedicated to painting
It was not an exhibition dedicated to painting that I went to admire but an exhibition that I consider rather as a representation of art and civilization, which combines art history, social history and politics with an interesting approach on the history of mentalities, which were deployed in France, Europe and the United States in the 20th century.
I have enjoyed exceptional paintings by uncontested masters of modernity, coming from the world’s greatest museums and private collections, for having transited through galleries in Paris or New York, a real chance to have them here in the heart of our light city.
A significant part of these works are directly related to Paul Rosenberg. This man is, in fact, emblematic witness to a crucial moment in the history of Art: the passage of the center of artistic gravity between the two shores of the Atlantic, a passage evidently due to the upheavals of the Second World War.
Through a cruel irony of history, his gallery in rue La Boétie was requisitioned by the Nazis as a kommandatur. This exhibition highlights the special relationship between the artist and the merchant and will help to understand how the art market was built at the beginnings of modernity.
I wish you a good evening my dear readers with a quote from Joseph Beuys « Do the right thing in the right place at the right time, all art is there. »
See you soon!
#INWOODLOVERS