CAZIEL: "Je Suis Abstrait", Works from the Fifties
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Transcript of CAZIEL: "Je Suis Abstrait", Works from the Fifties
6 DUKE STREET ST. JAMES’SL O N D O N S W 1 Y 6 B NTE L .+4 4 ( 0 ) 2 0 7 9 3 0 9 3 3 2FA X .+4 4 ( 0 ) 2 0 7 9 3 0 5 5 7 7i n f o@wh i t f o r d f i n e a r t . c omwww. w h i t f o r d f i n e a r t . c om
WHITFORDF I N E A R T
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“JE SUIS ABSTRAIT”
Works from the Fifties
8th – 31st October 2008
6 DUKE STREET ST. JAMES’S LONDON SW1Y 6BNTEL. +44 (0)20 7930 9332 EMAIL [email protected]
WHITFORDF I N E A R T
All Works are for Sale
Above: Caziel (Kazimierz Jozef Zielenkiewicz) with Picasso, Paris, 1951Front cover: Geometric Composition, c.1955 (cat. no. 36)
Paris – 1952
When the legendary Cubist art dealer Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler assumed Caziel’s abstract work to
be an experiment from which he would return to figuration, Caziel insisted ‘Non, je suis abstrait’.
Kahnweiler’s wish to include Caziel in his stable of figurative artists headed by Picasso, occured
at a time when Caziel had turned to Abstraction, ensued by the exciting developments of the
movement following the end of the Second World War.
In October 1944 the Galerie Berri-Raspail hosted an exhibition bringing together the work of the
pioneers of Abstraction Wassily Kandinsky and Paul Klee. Condemned by the Nazis as
‘degenerate’, Abstraction became the obvious course to run the rehabilitation of modern art. The
prevailing tendency was that of geometrical abstraction but artists experimented in different
directions, including ‘abstraction gestuel’ and ‘abstraction matière’. The foundation of the Salon
des Surindépendants in 1945 and the Salon des Réalites nouvelles in 1946-47, sought to unite the
heterogeneous abstract developments articulated in the work of Jean-Michel Atlan, Hans
Hartung, Yves Klein, Georges Mathieu, Joan Miró, Serge Poliakoff, Pierre Soulages and Victor
Vasarely.
In 1952 a group of young artists who had come to non-figuration around 1950, established the
Salon d’Octobre. Headed by Charles Estienne, and supported by Galerie Maeght they aimed to
rival the Salon des Réalites nouvelles. In his preface to the 1950 edition of ‘Les Mains éblouis’
exhibition at Galerie Maeght, Michel Seuphor defined the style of this group as a synthesis of
Expressionism, Surrealism and Abstraction. Its members, including Pierre Alechinsky, Corneille,
Huguette Bertrand, Jacques Doucet and Serge Rezvani dissociated from Picasso to favour the
lyricism of Klee, Kandinsky and Miró.
CAZIEL: ‘Je suis abstrait’
Work from the Fifties
Although Caziel never officially exhibited with the lyrical abstractionists, his personal
development mirrors that of the ‘Mains éblouis’ group. Caziel’s friendship with Picasso, with
whom he shared a studio for five years after the Second World War, remained close, but his
search for a fourth dimension heralds the end of Picasso’s influence and the beginning of his
experiments with the ideas of Kandinsky and Miró of transcending the second and third
dimension. Caziel’s expression of the fourth dimension resulted in paintings of superimposed
biomorphic shapes and lines in different strong colours against a black or a white background.
These works reverberate light, space and rhythm in order to create a sensation similar to
emotions engendered by music.
Caziel’s annual submissions to the Salon de Mai, 1948-1956, where his work was shown alongside
Vasarely, Hartung and Manessier, demonstrated his dedication to the Abstract cause. Official
recognition of his abstract work came in 1951, when the Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris,
purchased a monumental work. In 1953, The Vatican Museum commissioned a suite of four large
paintings. In London his abstract work was the subject of two one-man shows, 1966 and 1968, at
the Grabowski gallery.
This exhibition reveals Caziel’s early abstract work. It includes his first abstract paintings, which
combine a Cubist-influenced aesthetic and geometric decomposition, alongside his mature
abstract style in which lyricism and geometrical abstraction merge. With these works Caziel
believed that, as possibly Picasso and Braque did when they invented Cubism, he was reaching
for a higher order of reality, a new perspective, which hinted at the spiritual.
A highly personal expression of his epicurean belief that painting should bring joy, Caziel’s work
of the 1950s figures within the upbeat current which defined Paris’ cultural identity in the
aftermath of the Second World War.
An Jo Fermon, June 2008
1. Composition 11.52 1952
Gouache65 x 50.5 cm
2. Composition 25.08.1956 1956
Oil on canvas162 x 138 cm
EXHIBITED: 1966, Grabwoski Gallery, London1992, Royal West of England Academy, Bristol1998, Caziel 1906-1988, Retrospective Exhibition, National Museum, Warsaw 2004, Caziel, The Embassy of the Republic of Poland, London
LITERATURE: J. PERRY, The Grand Play of Light. The Art & Life of Caziel, AM Publications, London, 1997, ill. pl. 45, p. 55.D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 350, ill. no. 43, p. 99.
3. Composition 1950
Charcoal and watercolour49 x 35.3 cm
4. Abstract Composition c.1949
Oil on canvas62.5 x 40 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 212.
5. Composition 3.3.56 1956
Oil on canvas46 x 38 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 341.
6. Composition c.1950
Gouache46 x 33.5 cm
8. Composition “Cobra” c.1949
Oil on canvas32 x 41 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 191.
7. Composition #17 c.1949
Oil on canvas33 x 60 cm
EXHIBITED: 1997, Caziel, Works from the Fifties, Whitford Fine Art, London, cat. no.17
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 217.
9. Composition c.1955
Oil on canvas73 x 60 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 335.
10. Composition 49.XI.30 1949
Gouache and pencil48 x 62.5 cm
11. Composition #41 1952
Gouache55 x 76 cm
EXHIBITED: 1997, Caziel, Works from the Fifties, Whitford Fine Art, London, cat. no. 41
12. Organic Forms c.1950
Oil on canvas110 x 135 cm
EXHIBITED: 1998, Caziel 1906-1988, Retrospective Exhibition, National Museum, Warsaw 2004, Caziel, The Embassy of the Republic of Poland, London
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 235, ill. no. 34, p. 93.
13. Composition c.1955
Oil on canvas46 x 38 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 331.
15. Composition c.1950
Gouache32.5 x 62.5 cm
14. Composition c.1950
Gouache15.5 x 49 cm
16. Composition 1950
Charcoal and watercolour51 x 65.5 cm
17. Composition 09.51 1951
Oil on board71.5 x 51 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 266.
18. Composition c.1950
Charcoal and watercolour46.5 x 20 cm
19. Architectonic Composition c.1951
Oil on canvas61 x 51 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 285.
20. Architectonic Composition c.1952
Oil on canvas108 x 133 cm
EXHIBITED: 1998, Caziel 1906-1988, Retrospective Exhibition, National Museum, Warsaw
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 296, ill. no. 39, p. 95.
21. Composition 1950
Gouache and charcoal49.5 x 65 cm
22. Composition 15.3.56 1956
Oil on canvas46 x 38 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 342.
23. Composition c.1950
Charcoal and watercolour48 x 63 cm
24. Composition c.1952
Oil on canvas38 x 55 cm
26. Composition c.1951
Oil on board31 x 40 cm
25. Composition c.1951
Oil on board27 x 37 cm
27. Composition c.1951
Charcoal and gouache41 x 61 cm
28. Composition 56.VII 1956
Charcoal and gouache50 x 65.5 cm
29. Composition 19.May.1955 1955
Oil on canvas73 x 91 cmInscribed "Katika" verso
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 313A.
30. Architectonic Composition 1951
Oil on board41 x 33 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 269.
31. Composition 12.8.55 1955
Oil on canvas41 x 33 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat, rais. no. 321.
32. Architectonic Composition c.1952–3
Oil on canvas90 x 128 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 299.
33. Composition c.1955
Oil on canvas41 x 33 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 330.
34. Composition #25 c.1951
Oil on board26.5 x 34.5 cm
EXHIBITED: 1997, Caziel, Works from the Fifties, Whitford Fine Art, London, cat. no. 25
35. Composition 1950
Charcoal and watercolour51 x 66.5 cm
36. Geometric Composition c.1955
Oil on canvas81 x 65 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 332.
37. Composition 11 May 52 1952
Pencil55.5 x 50 cm
38. Cubist Nude Study c.1949
Oil on canvas33 x 46 cm
LITERATURE: D. MONKIEWICZ, Caziel 1906-1988, Catalogue Raisonné, National Museum, Warsaw, 1998, cat. rais. no. 176.
Left: 39. Composition c.1950, Gouache, 62 x 48 cm
1 Composition 11.522 Composition 25.08.19563 Composition4 Abstract Composition5 Composition 3.3.566 Composition7 Composition #178 Composition “Cobra”9 Composition10 Composition 49.XI.3011 Composition #4112 Organic Forms13 Composition14 Composition15 Composition16 Composition17 Composition 09.5118 Composition19 Architectonic Composition20 Architectonic Composition21 Composition22 Composition 15.3.5623 Composition24 Composition25 Composition26 Composition27 Composition28 Composition 56.VII29 Composition 19.May.195530 Architectonic Composition31 Composition 12.8.5532 Architectonic Composition33 Composition34 Composition #2535 Composition36 Geometric Composition37 Composition 11.05.5238 Cubist Nude Study39 Composition40 Composition 11.1949
WORKS
All works are signed or have the Studio stamp
40. Composition 11.1949 1949
Gouache and pencil47 x 62 cm
CHRONOLOGY & EXHIBITIONS
1906 Born in Sosnowiec, Poland, on 16th June
1931-36 Studied painting in Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts
1932 Exhibited at Loza Wolnomalarska (Lodge of Free Painters)
1937 Won a State scholarship to Italy and Paris
1939 Volunteered for the Polish Army in France
1946 Settled in France, Aix-en-Provence, later moved to Paris
Designed the Polish Pavilion for UNESCO International Exhibition of Modern Art
1947 Held one-man show at the Galerie Allard, Paris
1948 Met Picasso with whom he developed a long standing friendship
1948-56 Exhibited at the Salon de Mai in Paris
1951 The Musée National d’Art Moderne purchased one of his monumental canvas works
1953 The Vatican commissioned four large paintings for their Museum of Modern Religious Art
Designed frescoes for French architect Jean Ginsberg
1957 Married the Scottish painter Catherine Sinclair
1963 Exterior design for the Atomic Energy Commission at Tollemache House, Thurso
1966 First one-man in London, hosted by the Grabowski Gallery
Second one-man show at the Grabowski Gallery, London
1966-68 Exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts, London
1968 Second one-man show at the Grabowski Gallery, London
1969 Left France to settle in Somerset, England
1978 Exhibited at the National Museum, Warsaw – Circle of Tadeusz Pruszkowski
1983 Exhibited works on paper at the Summer Exhibition at Fair Maids House Gallery, Perth
1988 Died in Somerset
1990 Memorial Exhibition at the Polish Cultural Institute, London
1991 Exhibition at the Butlin Gallery, Dillington House College, Ilminster, Somerset
1992 Exhibition of works from 1945 – 1988 at the Royal West of England Academy, Bristol
1995 Exhibition Caziel (1906-1988): Substance and Light at Whitford Fine Art, London
1997 Exhibition Caziel: Drawings from the Fourties at Whitford Fine Art, London
Exhibition Caziel: Works from the Fifties at Whitford Fine Art, London
1998 Retrospective Exhibition at the National Museum, Warsaw
2001 Exhibition Contour and Line: Selection of Works on Paper from 1965 by Caziel at
Whitford Fine Art, London
2004 Exhibition Caziel: Abstraction: 1963 – 1967 at Whitford Fine Art, London
Retrospective Exhibition at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland, London
2006 Centenary Retrospective Exhibition at Whitford Fine Art, London
© Whitford Fine Art
Produced by Artmedia Press Ltd • London
6 DUKE STREET ST. JAMES’SL O N D O N S W 1 Y 6 B NTE L .+4 4 ( 0 ) 2 0 7 9 3 0 9 3 3 2FA X .+4 4 ( 0 ) 2 0 7 9 3 0 5 5 7 7i n f o@wh i t f o r d f i n e a r t . c omwww. w h i t f o r d f i n e a r t . c om
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