75 Maurice de Vlaminck (French, 1876-1958) Vue du Bougival signed ‘Vlaminck’ (lower right) oil on canvas, 60x73 cm
Maurice de Vlaminck was born in Paris in April 1876. A self-taught artist who deliberately rejected academic training, he followed his own artistic path, and was equally passionate about music, cycling and writing. De Vlaminck’s oeuvre can broadly be divided into three stylistic phases: Fauvist, Cézanne- inspired, and Expressionist. Each phase played a vital role in shaping his reputation as a pioneering figure in early modern art. His Fauvist period (circa 1904-1908) marked the beginning of his career. Alongside Henri Matisse (1869-1954) and André Derain (1880- 1954), De Vlaminck emerged as one of the central figures of Fauvism. The movement, deeply influenced by Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890), was characterised by a simplification of form and a liberated use of pure, intense colour applied with expressive spontaneity. Around 1905-1906, De Vlaminck settled near Bougival in the Seine Valley, within the wooded area of La Jonchère. This region, easily accessible from Paris, had long attracted Impressionist painters since the 1860s and 1870s, who depicted scenes of leisure along the Seine. An enthusiastic cyclist, Vlaminck frequently explored the area on his bicycle to paint en plein air, producing numerous canvases dedicated to this small town of Bougival. In Vue de Bougival, we witness De Vlaminck’s gradual move away from Fauvism. His discovery of Paul Cézanne’s (1839-1906) work offered him a new artistic compass. Though nature remained his constant muse, his palette between 1907 and 1910 softened into earthy, muted tones and darker colours, and his compositions acquired a firmer structural coherence, reflecting Cézanne’s constructive approach to form. In this work, the village is rendered with block-like, almost cubist volumes, anchored by the Romanesque bell tower of the church of Notre-Dame de l’Assomption, which interrupts the central perspective. The warm reds and oranges of the houses contrast strikingly with the impasto of the darker background, generating a sense of depth and tension. Painted en plein air, Vue de Bougival encapsulates both the vitality of the landscape and Vlaminck’s vigorous, expressive brushwork - marking a pivotal moment of transformation in his artistic evolution.
Painted circa 1909.
€70,000 - €100,000
Provenance: -With Galerie Paul Vallotton S.A., Lausanne, inv. no. 8688, as: ‘Paysage avec église’ (label attached to the reverse). -With Galerie A. Vollard, Paris, inv. no. 7418 (label attached to the reverse) -With Kunsthandel Frans Jacobs, Amsterdam, where dated circa 1909, and with certificate no. 02.09.20/8582 from the Wildenstein Institute (label attached to the reverse). -Acquired from the above by the present owner in April 2003. This lot is accompanied by the original copy of the Wildenstein Institute, Paris, with certificate no. 02.09.20/8582, reference no. 2419, titled ‘Vue de Bougival’, with red stamp ‘Wildenstein Institute Paris’, dated Paris 25 September 2002.
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