Lot 57: Paul-Émile Borduas 1905 - 1960 Canadian oil on

Paul-Émile Borduas 1905 - 1960 Canadian oil on canvas Mazurka 42 x 32 inches 106.7 x 81.3 centimeters signed and dated 1955 and on verso titled on the artist's label and stamped Galerie Agnès Lefort three times on the stretcher Literature:François-Marc Gagnon, Paul-Émile Borduas (1905 - 1960), Biographie critique et analyse de l'oeuvre, 1978, listed page 384 Provenance:Acquired directly from the Artist in New York by Gilles Corbeil, Maurice Corbeil and Gérard Beaulieu Galerie Agnès Lefort, Montreal Private Collection, Montreal Borduas was close to his departure for Paris when, in March of 1955, his friend Gilles Corbeil visited him in New York. The two men discussed the possibility of a big sale of his recent production to Montreal collectors. Corbeil had been delegated by his brother Maurice and by Gérard Beaulieu to explore the possibility with Borduas. The idea was both to help him financially for his impending departure to Paris and to empty the studio before he left. Mazurka was part of a group of 18 paintings finally agreed upon and acquired by the trio of men. Borduas was paid on August 31 and left New York for Paris a few weeks later, on September 21. The 18 paintings were expedited to Montreal on the very eve of his departure (the bill of lading is dated September 20). The collectors were to divide the group of works between themselves and each one was free to do what he wanted with his share. We don't know which one of the three acquired Mazurka. One thing is sure; he didn't keep it for himself but sold it to a Montreal collector through Agnès Lefort Gallery's good services. This makes sense, since Mrs. Lefort had held a major Borduas show at her gallery the year before, was familiar with his works and had contacts with collectors. This anecdote would not be of very great interest if it had not solved one problem: the dating of the work. Mazurka is dated on the painting itself, in the upper left corner. A 1955 Borduas painting could just as likely have been done in Paris, but in this case, we are sure that Mazurka was painted in New York and represents the acme of his New York period. It is a beautiful painting, playing not only with the contrast of black and white, but also with the effects of transparency in the blue, pink and grey. Mazurka is a good title for this painting, suggesting centrifugal movement from the center to the periphery, especially in its lower half. There is definitively the feeling of a dance movement, such as Polish dances. Is it not traditional for peasant women to wear white shirts emblazoned with red when dancing the mazurka? One could add that among the 18 paintings bought, a number had titles referring to dance, such as Tango, Carnet de bal and Blancs tournoiements. What is more important than these associations suggested by the title is the structure of the painting. In New York, confronted with Abstract Expressionism, Borduas was able to substantially modify the system of his previous period. Instead of having objects in suspension in front of a background receding to infinity as in his Automatist period, he had on one hand, the background migrating closer and closer to the surface of the painting, destroying any easy effect of depth, and on the other hand, was getting rid of the objects themselves. What he succeeded in creating was a much more unified field in which both the movement of the palette knife and the nuance of colours stand for themselves. The new freedom gained this way opened for Borduas a complete new world of associations and inventions. This is why I spoke of the acme of the New York period à propos Mazurka. In Paris, as we know, Borduas went one step further by introducing the renowned black spots in his white background paintings in his famous black and white period. Blacks were already making an appearance in Mazurka and the transparency in certain areas suggested a possibility of a new sense of depth. Borduas's oeuvre is extremely coherent, and historically, with Mazurka, we have an important link in his development. It is a painting worthy of the best attention of collectors. We thank François-Marc Gagnon of the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Institute of Studies in Canadian Art, Concordia University, for contributing the above essay.