George Condo (b. 1957)
George Condo (b. 1957)

Three Figure Composition

細節
George Condo (b. 1957)
Three Figure Composition
signed and dated 'Condo 09' (upper left)
acrylic, charcoal and pastel on linen  
50 x 42 in. (127 x 106.6 cm.)
Painted in 2009.
來源
Sprüth Magers, Berlin
Acquired from the above by the present owner

拍品專文

Three Figure Composition is a sophisticated demonstration of George Condo’s unique interpretations of the traditions of portraiture. Known for his distinctive figures and bold lines, here his work evokes the century old tropes of Cubism while, at the same time, remaining resolutely contemporary. While his figures often appear fractured or stark, they nonetheless retain their emotive quality as Condo dismantles the structure of traditional portrait, leaving behind only the essential elements to shine through.

Described variously by the artist as “psychological cubism” and “artificial realism”, his unique aesthetic in Three Figure Composition is subtle but no less distinct. (S. Jefferies, Guardian, “George Condo” February 2014). The gentle pinks applied to the translucent wash of the figures lends warmth and depth to his bold lines. With the gesture of the direct gaze of his figures across the canvas, Condo evokes the confrontational attitude of many of his other works, and yet the intimacy of the image is undeniable, both in the omnipresent bodies and in the small moments where the lines soften as well.

Curator Margrit Brehm sums up his work thus: "George Condo makes frequent reference to the works of Velázquez and Manet, but also to Greuze and Fragonard, Delacroix and Goya, and repeatedly to Picasso. What interests him are how paintings function, how illusions are created, and how stories are told. Yet however important this reference to tradition is, it does not determine the primary appearance of his works. Attention is what Condo's figures initially demand, located as they are between the grotesque and the comic, protagonists caught between comedy and tragedy. Only on closer observation does the degree emerge to which his way of painting, his composition and his concept of the figure govern the actual attraction of his paintings, and how complex and independent is his engagement with a very personal tradition” (M. Brehm, "Tradition as Temptation. An Approach to the 'George Condo Method'", in T. Kellein, George Condo: One Hundred Women, exh. cat., Salzburg, Museum der Moderne, 2005, pp. 19-20).

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